Destiny's Light
by TheEscapeFromReality
Summary: Discontinued and under revision! It all started with occlumency with Snape. Harry thought he knew who he was fighting against and who he could trust. But secrets are unfolding, and he finds himself in the midst of them all. Good Tom Riddle! Bad Dumbles! Alive Lily/James! OC/HP abused HP!
1. Occlumency lesson

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I only own plot.**

**Okay, every fanfiction writer has to go down this Harry Potter path! The Severitus!**

Harry saw a blur of his memories flash by. He was playing Quidditch……. he was kissing Cho Chang…. he was being chased by Dudley and his gang…… he was watching Cedric Diggory die…..

"No," Harry whispered.

The memories stopped and Harry turned to stare at the most hated teacher he has ever had: Professor Snape.

Professor Snape had the usual hooked nose, beady black eyes that reminded you of deep, dark tunnels, slimy, greasy hair and facial hair, and the same sneer as he looked at Harry.

"Potter!" he mocked. "Can't you do any better then that? You are just as arrogant and lazy as your pathetic father!"

Harry lifted himself from the cold, hard floor of the dungeons, where Professor Snape's classroom and office was located. He gave Snape a cold glare. "My father wasn't arrogant! And neither am I!"

"You are more like him then you know, Potter," Snape sneered. "He was as pampered as you are. He strutted around the castle liked he owned the place. He hexed anyone who crossed his path, or just for the fun of it."

"So he was like you," Harry snarled, his hands clenching together to make fists.

"Legilimens," Snape snapped in reply, not bothering to answer.

Harry saw more rushes pf his memories. He was killing the basilisk….. He was rescuing the egg, trying to escape the dragon…. then he saw the one memory he never wanted Snape, the man who loathed him, to ever see.

He was staring at his uncle, who was looking quite livid, his beady eyes flashing, his mustache twitching, and his usually purple face had an even more flushed face.

"How dare you get better grades then Dudley! Who did you cheat from, boy?"

"No one, sir," Harry watched him, the nine-year old, whisper.

"You're a liar!" Vernon spat. "A freak, too! Just like your stupid Mother and Father. They were worthless people who killed themselves in a car crush because they were drunk!"

That was when the worst beating in his life had happened. Vernon had dragged him to the garage, or the torture room as Harry knew it as and promptly threw him against the hard cold floor.

"Please, no, Uncle," Harry whispered.

His uncle paid him no heed as he grabbed a whip from a table, grinning evilly at his nephew. He brought back the whip and, laughing, slammed it against Harry. Harry winced but didn't speak, having known their was no way around the beating.

"You worthless piece of scum," Vernon hissed.

He kicked Harry hard where his stomach was and Harry flung against the wall, his head hitting it with force. Harry landed, hearing a small crack from his left wrist, and he trembled.

"Please Uncle," he begged, tears streaming down his pale cheeks. "I'll be good."

"You deserve this, boy," his uncle growled. "Every freak like you needs this!"

His uncle brought out a long, sharp blade and stripped Harry of his too big shirt and pants. He harshly set Harry onto his back and applied as much pressure as he could muster onto his back. With a sickening grin, he carved the words: Freak. The blood gushed out and Harry flinched in pain, biting his lip to stop the scream waiting to come, and his back felt like it was on fire. His uncle lifted him up by his messy hair and he whimpered. With an angry glint in his eyes, he raised his fist and-

Harry felt the dream stop and Harry landed onto the cold dungeon floor, just now realizing he was crying. A small pain in his knees awakened his feeling and he quickly whipped away the tears, standing up slowly. He couldn't meet Snape's dark eyes, knowing all he would find was strange satisfaction and hatred.

"Mr. Potter, what was that?" Snape questioned softly.

"Nothing," Harry answered quickly, his eyes still firmly staring at the ground.

"Don't lie to me!" Snape hissed. "How did you put that memory into your head? Did Ms. Granger help you?"

"Yes, it was a joke!" Harry said shakily, his eyes finding Snape's own. He was shocked by the level of fury in the gaze, and he instantly froze. With a terrified gasp, Harry fell backwards in shock.

"Potter!" Snape said deadly. "You do know you just tried to deceive a teacher for unwanted attention. You are so arrogant." He stepped forward, moving closer and closer to Harry.

Harry fought the urge to beg for mercy and didn't notice as his hands flew over his head, awaiting a fist to slam against his own. He saw Snape's feet stop.

The seconds ticked by and Harry heard a chocking sound echo through the room. He felt dampness on his cheek and he realized the nose was coming from him. He was crying.

"You're crying," Snape murmured, falling down onto his knees to stare into Harry's face.

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry whispered.

"For what?" Snape asked coldly. "For lying to me?"

Harry trembled. "Please don't tell Dumbledore!"

"I insure you I am going to! You should be expelled."

Harry bowed his head. "I know. I'm just a freak. I deserve all of the pain."

Snape suddenly grabbed Harry's face and he flinched, expecting to be hit, but was confused by the shock on his face.

"What did you just say?" Snape whispered.

Harry shook. "I-I'm a freak and I deserve all of my suffering," he whispered, mortified. "I would deserve any punishment you give me, sir."

Snape moved his hand gently to Harry's face. "You're still crying."

Harry gasped, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry, sir." The tears stopped.

"What is wrong with you, Potter?" Snape growled.

Harry tried to stop shaking. "I'm sorry, sir," he whispered, his frightened eyes fixed on the floor on his right. "You shouldn't have to waste your time with freak like me."

"Mr. Potter I am your teacher!" Snape exclaimed. "I would never lay a hand on you!"

Harry's face snapped to his, suddenly realizing where he was. He bit his lip and stopped shaking. "Don't tell Dumbledore," he begged. "It doesn't matter."

"You've been abused, Potter," Snape said firmly. "We must put an end to it."

"I deserve it," Harry argued at once. "Why does it matter?"

"You deserve it?" Snape hissed. "I think not, Mr. Potter, No one deserves that amount of torture. And only because of good grades!"

"It's my fault Cedric Diggory is dead and Voldemort is back," Harry said in an unsteady voice. "It's my fault my parents were killed! I am the one who always kills someone-"

"Enough Potter," Snape murmured harshly. "Enough."

Harry was again trembling, ripples of agony cutting into him. He again brought his hand to cover his face and then realized what he had done and quickly moved them back down, pretending it didn't happen.

"Oh, Harry," the man whispered. Snape placed his hand on Harry's shoulder. "You will never be going back there again."

Harry turned to look at Snape. "I don't want to be a burden," he muttered.

"I don't want you to suffer," Snape said calmly, surprised at the words that came from his mouth. "You don't deserve this, Harry."

"Why do you keep on calling me Harry?" he asked, his emerald eyes looking into Snape's black ones.

"It's your name isn't it?" Snape asked briskly.

"Yes, well-"

"Would you prefer Potter?"

"No," Harry answered quickly. "Just Harry."

"Why are you so ready to give up your last name?" Harry questioned.

"Because it reminds me that I'm the Boy-Who-Lived," Harry told him emotionless. He got to his feet slowly, Snape echoing his moves. "And I hate the attention."

Snape turned to stare at the teenager he had thought was spoiled and cocky. How wrong he was.

"We need to see the Headmaster," Snape told him. "I can't let you go back to them."

Harry's gaze fell to the floor. "Thank you, sir."

"For what?" Snape asked in confusion. "I didn't do anything."

"Yes you did," Harry said softly. "You cared."

Snape stared at the broken boy before him, again astonished by how grateful he was for just worrying about him. Or as he put it, he cared.

"Are you injuried now?" Snape asked suddenly.

Harry locked eyes with him. "Yes," he admitted quietly.

And Snape watched as the by waved his wand over his body, concentrating hard, and Snape was staring at his body. It looked more like target practice. His body that wasn't concealed contained bruises so plentiful he couldn't see much unnatural pale skin. Scars ran deep down his body, one trailing down the side of his neck to his right arm. His eyes were focused on Snape, sad and shamed. Snape could only stare and curse under his breath.

Those muggles were going to pay for what they did to Harry.

"Come on, Harry," Snape urged him gently. "We need to see the Headmaster then treat those injuries."

"Yes, sir," he murmured before walking behind the potions master, his face twisted in pain.

With a small flick of his wand his wounds vanished and so did the trace of any agony. He was as unemotional as ever, not wanting to show any weakness again.

"What did they do to you, Harry?" Snape whispered one last time, staring at him, before turning away.  
His mask had faltered slightly as he looked at the teenager trying to avoid any emotions and sighed. This boy went through so much but was still so pure. He was a light to those who face just the tiny bit of hard times, when he hid his own so well. He really wasn't as arrogant as he had always believed. And, like always, Dumbledore was right about Harry. He did have the worst past imaginable and he had just made everything worse with all the mocks and taunts. Guilt tore at Snape and he winced, vowing he could make everything better for the poor Boy-Who-Lived.

**Hey! Don't be too hard on me! This is my first attempt at one of these fics! I know the legilimency was a little off but please don't flame me!**

**Please review! I will stop if everyone thinks it is crap, so tell me how you feel.**

**Here's the map you all need! I don't want you to get lost or anything! ;**

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	2. Portkey to Parents

**I do not own Harry Potter. I only own plot.**

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait! Note on this story, it will be a Severitus kind of, but mostly a Snape mentor thing. I changed the plot a little and you'll see when you read this! I hope I don't dissapoint!**

Harry walked slowly after Severus Snape, trying not to hyperventilate. It was just his luck to have his worst enemy find out about his deepest secret. Most would say this was a good thing, seeing how horrible abuse is, but Harry knew better.

No one could care about someone like him. Use him and manipulate him was possible, but never love or like. Who would like some freak like him?

Harry carefully walked up to the Headmasters office with Snape, careful not to make any noise of distress.

"_Harry Potter," _a voice suddenly hissed.

Harry spun around, recognizing parseltounge, and couldn't stop a gasp when he came inches away from a giant, black snake.

"_Harry Potter," _it hissed again.

"Hurry up, Mr. Potter!" Snape snapped, glancing back.

Harry gaped at him. Didn't he notice the giant snake about to bite his head off?

"What's wrong?" he asked quickly, looking around. His eyes swept across the huge snake without a moment of pause.

Could he not see the snake? Harry quickly turned to the snake and whispered, _"what do you want?"_

"Harry?" Snape pursued, taking a few steps to him.

The snake lunged forward, and Harry expected to be struck. He pulled out his wand, but before he could use it, he was spinning. He knew the feeling instantly. A portkey. He slammed against a soft carpet, and he quickly glanced up. Who he saw was giving him the impression that he was dreaming.

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Snape stared at the spot where Harry had just vanished. He felt cold dread.

Not even hesitating, he sprinted to the Headmaster's room. He barged through the door to stare at an old man with a long, white beard and hair. With kind, twinkling blue eyes covered with spectacles. He had a large crooked nose, with seemed to be broken at least twice, and bright clothing.

"Headmaster!" he gasped. "Harry-occlumency-abused-vanished!"

Headmaster Dumbledore looked alert. "Harry's gone?"

Snape nodded weakly, pacing back and forth. "He vanished when we were heading here to see you."

"And why, may I ask, were you coming to see me?" Dumbledore questioned, watching Snape intently.

Snape took a deep breath and slowly explained to him about the lesson and what happened. Dumbledore's expression was blank. At the end, he was looking grave.

"We need to find the boy!" Dumbledore said swiftly.

"Yes," Snape continued, "and then find him new guardians."

"New guardians?" Dumbledore exclaimed. "What's wrong with you, Severus? The boy needs the discipline! He's safe there!"

Snape looked at Dumbledore in shock. "What?!" he growled. "Did you just say you approve of this abuse?"

Dumbledore pointed his wand quickly at Snape. "Obliviate," he hissed. "That should make you forget about the last few hours."

Snape's expression went blank.

"Stupefy!" Dumbledore added, waving his wand.

Snape fell to the ground his head slamming against the floor hard.

"Now to find the Boy-Who-Lived," Dumbledore said, standing up abruptly. He stormed from the room.

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Harry stared at his parents in astonishment.

He rubbed his eyes, realizing his glasses were gone. He must be seeing things.

He continued to look at them. His mother had the same red hair and emerald eyes that she had in the mirror of erised and his photographs of her. He turned to his father. They looked so clear. How could it be that he could see so well without his glasses?

"Harry," Lily Potter whispered in a soft, melody-like voice, grabbing him and pulling him into an embrace.

"My son," James Potter spoke, clasping his hand on Harry's shoulder.

Harry turned to him and stared, taking in all his features with a new addiction. They looked a lot alike. Yet, this James Potter wasn't wearing glasses.

"Are you real?" Harry murmured. "But you can't be! You're dead."

"No, we live," Lily whispered. "We will make it all clear to you."

"For now we must treat those wounds," James added.

Harry looked down, realizing his covering spells weren't working. He looked pretty bad.

James waved his wand.

Harry realized how much better he felt, with the pain embedding away.

It wasn't right. It was too real. This couldn't be happening. Was he dead? But if he was dead he wouldn't had been feeling pain from ther abuse.

Harry glanced at his parents, fixing his stare on them. Tears were blurring his vision and falling down his face.

"How?" he whispered.

"Come. Sit with us," Lily said gently.

She took his hand and led him to a ruby red couch across from a warm fireplace. They sat down together.

"Please just listen to the whole story, son," James requested. "It will be much easier."

Harry nodded.

"Harry, we were not killed," James started, watching Harry intently. "We were in hiding from a man called-"

"Voldemort," Harry interrupted. "I know."

"Yes, Voldemort," Lily whispered.

"Voldemort and Albus Dumbledore were working together for what they called the greater good," James said.

"No!" Harry gasped. "Albus Dumbledore is the leader of the light!"

"No," a quiet voice spoke behind them. "That would be me."

Harry spun around to look straight at Tom Riddle.

**Ohhhhhhh... You are all thinking I am insane now, huh? It will all make sense in the next chapter! I'm sorry it was so short! **

**Here is the map! Please review!**

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	3. The Truth

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I own plot and what you don't recognize.**

**Here is the next chapter. I know you all must hate me but please don't. I just have a very busy life full of school and of sports. Sorry for the wait!**

**In this story there is no Horcruxes.**

* * *

Harry stared at Tom Riddle, abruptly wondering why in the world he wasn't the ugly snake as usual and why he hasn't killed him yet. Nevertheless, he directed his wand at his face immediately, knowing from experience to never let down his guard. He watched Tom Riddle smile and turn to James and Lily.

"I told you he would react this way," he spoke in a smooth, medium-toned voice that sounded wrong.

What happened to that terrifying snake-like voice that sent shivers down your spine when you here it?

"Honestly, Voldemort has done the most cruel things to him," Tom Riddle continued. "I would be worried about his health if he didn't react this way."

"What the heck is going on?" Harry asked finally, glaring at the smirking Tom Riddle. Why was he talking in third person? "Why aren't you trying to kill me?"

"I haven't ever tried to kill you, Harry," Tom Riddle laughed, but his face was serious. "This is going to be a long conversation."

"What the heck do you mean when you say you haven't tried to kill me? You've been after me since I was a baby!" It took all of Harry's will not to yell.

Tom Riddle sighed, before moving to sit next to James and Lily.

"Harry, listen to me. It will be explained."

Harry paused, before nodding curtly. He sat down in a red arm chair stiffly, his eyes not leaving Tom Riddle's. He held his wand firmly, refusing to relax.

"Harry," Lily said gently, "Tom doesn't even have his wand out. Relax, sweetie."

"Why exactly should I trust you?" Harry snapped. "You're supposed to be dead. How do I know you aren't a trick?"

"If I was a trick I would have hurt you by now, Harry," Lily murmured, smiling half-heartily. "When you hear the story you'll understand."

Harry looked into her emerald eyes, then turned to his father and then Tom Riddle. For some reason he felt like they were telling the truth. Wasn't Dumbledore always using him? Couldn't Dumbledore be a Dark Lord? Was that really so hard to believe?

"I'm listening," Harry said.

"Good, because it is a long story and I would hate to repeat myself," the young Tom Riddle said smoothly. "I knew you would listen in the end, Harry. You're a good kid."

Harry watched Tom Riddle closely, taking in his calm face and kind green eyes.

"Dumbledore has always wanted power," Tom began, "and it started with Grindelwald. Grindelwald was trying to stop Dumbledore, but Dumbledore defeated him in battle. Dumbledore was hailed as a great, kind-hearted man and he continued to teach at Hogwarts." He paused.

Harry tried his hardest not to interrupt and impatiently waited for more.

"You need to understand, Harry, that my older brother, Derek Riddle, was born in place of who you thought was me. Our mother, Merope, gave our father, Tom Riddle S., a love potion. She had me two years after him. She thought he would never abandon her if he saw that she had two young children, but as soon as she stopped giving him love potions, he threw her out. My mother took us to an orphanage and died soon after."

"Derek Riddle?" Harry repeated, staring at Tom in shock.

"Derek Damion Riddle," he answered. "Or, as you know him, Lord Voldemort."

"I don't understand," Harry said quietly.

"Dumbledore saw potential in my brother," Tom explained. "He saw the intents of my brother's heart and knew exactly how powerful he was. He immediately gave Tom special attention, and also watched me carefully. He thought for sure we would be two great allies. But soon he realized how I didn't agree with anything he thought was right, and over the years he trained Derek and made him into a Dark Lord. He soon realized I knew too much and framed me for everything my brother did. Everyone thought that Derek was the good older brother while Tom Marvolo Riddle was an outcast. He got everyone important enough the believe that Tom Riddle was Voldemort. Derek Riddle is forever known as the older brother who Tom Riddle killed off. I have been running ever since."

"But you look exactly like him," Harry commented, uncertain.

"That's because they were almost identical," James told his son. "Just Voldemort had much darker green eyes and hair and was taller. Voldemort was much older-looking too, of course, because he was the elder brother."

Harry sat there, turning the thoughts over in his head, and the idea slowly sunk in.

"So you have been blamed for everything Voldemort has done?" Harry asked finally.

"Yes," Tom answered softly, his face grave.

"Then why do you look so young? You look only a year or so older than me."

Tom laughed. "You don't age in this place."

Harry glanced at the large living room they were in and noticed the large library next to where they sat and the large, red carpet laying on the stone floor. A fireplace was close to them, the fire blazing, and noticed the golden and red banners hanging down. He turned to see three or four more wooden doors.

"This is Godric Gryffindor's home," Tom explained, smiling.

"Godric Gryffindor," Harry gasped. "How-?"

"My Mother was just as related to Salazar as she was to Godric. I found maps of this house in the Chamber of Secrets years ago. I hid here when Dumbledore and his so-called Order hunted me down."

"Wow," Harry murmured, before turning back to his parents. "How aren't you dead?"

"You did almost kill Voldemort," James said. "He heard a prophecy. Your Mom and I had recently met Tom and he had explained the story to us." He glanced at Tom. "We quit the Order and we knew Dumbledore was trying to kill us. We had to hide to be able to stay alive for you. So we put two Death Eaters under the imperius curse and gave them polyjuice potion. Voldemort killed his own two servants that night."

"Why didn't you come for me sooner?" Harry whispered, confused.

"Dumbledore was watching you carefully. We couldn't risk it," Lily murmured. "We wanted to so bad."

"So do you know everything about my life?"

"Yes," Tom said, nodding.

Harry sat there for a moment before a thought struck him. "Wait, why did Dumbledore make it so hard for Voldemort to come back?"

"Because he wanted you to think that he cared about you," Tom said darkly. "He waited until you trusted him enough before having that Death Eater impersonate Mad Eye Moody and have Voldemort be revived."

"But wasn't Voldemort impatient?" Harry questioned.

"Yes, but my brother wasn't in Slytherin for nothing. He knew the advantages of waiting."

"But why did you step in now and what was with the snake?" Harry asked.

"Well my snake, Raiden, had a portkey on him." Tom smiled. "The moment he touched you it would be activated. And we stepped in because we were tired of you being abused and we didn't want Dumbledore to ruin your life more."

"Oh." Harry paused. "It was strange when I saw him and Snape didn't."

"Well Snape isn't a descendant of the founders, so he couldn't see Raiden."

"I am a descendant of the founders?" Harry asked quickly, looking at his parents and Tom in surprise.

"Yes. You probably didn't know this, but your mother isn't muggle-born," Tom told him. "Her parents were pureblood, but they went in hiding to escape Voldemort."

Harry looked at his mother. "Really?" he asked curiously.

"Yes, I am a descendant of Salazar Slytherin and Rowena Ravenclaw."

"Both!" Harry exclaimed.

"Well, they are married," Lily commented.

"They are?" Harry shook his head. "Nothing will surprise me now, I guess."

"Us two are the only living heirs to Godric Gryffindor and Helga Hufflepuff besides Minerva McGonagall and Tom, or course," James declared.

Harry shook his head, smiling. "What about Dumbledore?"

"He just claims that he is an heir," Tom muttered coldly, looking furious. "He is such a disgrace."

"This is unbelievable," Harry whispered, staring at Tom and his parents. He grinned at his parents. "I'm so glad you're alive!"

Lily smiled back while James ordered, "come here, kiddo!"

Harry was brought into a warm embrace by his parents, before turning to Tom.

"So we are going to kill Dumbledore and Voldemort, right?"

"Yes," Tom agreed, grinning. "And it's about time someone trains you."

"But what about school?" Harry asked quickly, his smile dropping slightly.

"A day here is maybe an hour there. Don't be so worried about it."

Harry nodded, grinning. He let out a laugh, shaking his head.

"What?" James asked curiously.

"I have never been so happy in my life," Harry admitted, still grinning.

* * *

Only a minute had passed since Harry disappeared, but Dumbledore was already worried. What was he supposed to do without his golden boy? He was so close to manipulating him into a Dark Lord. He knew that his partner, Derek(Voldemort), could get Harry to join there side and become a fellow Dark Lord. With all his power it was possible!

Harry Potter was powerful, he knew that. He only struggled here because Dumbledore put a spell on him to hold all his power. If he had been able to almost kill Derek at age one then he knew he had to prevent his full power until he was on their side. Dumbledore knew from what Derek had told him that he had done it by himself, with no sacrificing from his mother of father or anything. He had Harry believe that his mother died for him, of course.

Dumbledore smiled. Once he found Harry everything would go according to plan. He laughed coldly, before moving to the place Harry had vanished.

* * *

Snape woke up with a very bad headache twenty minutes after Harry had vanished. He rubbed it as he stood up from his position on his chair in his office. He turned when someone knocked on his door. He let in a calm Headmaster, who was smiling slightly with a glint in his eye.

"Severus, I need to know something," Dumbledore said, before sitting down in a chair.

"Anything, Albus," Severus replied, moving to sit in a chair also. He sat down stiffly, still rubbing his head.

Dumbledore smirked, before asking, "what side are you _really _on?"

Snape looked at him, realizing he had no control over what he blurted out. "I am on the light side."

"So against Voldemort?"

Snape meant to ask Dumbledore why, but he said, "yes."

Dumbledore shook his head. He offered Snape a vial and Snape took it, drinking it hesitantly, and he relaized it was an antidote to veriterserprum.

"That's too bad, my boy," Dumbledore said after he was done. He pointed his wand at Snape's face. "Any last words?"

Snape stared at the Headmaster in shock, before slowly sliding his wand slowly out of his sleeve.

"I always knew you were a manipulative, insane old man," Snape hissed, watching as a glow of green light headed for his face. He ducked quickly and grabbed a black brooch with a silver snake and a P that was on his robe. He pointed his wand at it and muttered, "Prince's Manor."

And with a flash, Snape was gone, leaving a very angry Dumbledore behind.

**A/N: What do you think? Please review!**

**If anything is unclear just ask!**

**And I hope those of you who were upset about Snape will be happy with this. Snape should find out about Harry and Tom and his parents soon.**

**Reviews make my day!**


	4. Awakened Power

Sorry it took so long. I had lots of sports. School is over now so I can write a lot more. I would have had the chapter sooner, but I had computer problems. But don't worry i'll update again soon enough.

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! You guys are great! Please keep it up!

Here's the chapter. Hope you like it!

* * *

Harry smiled at Tom and his parents.

"So what exactly are we going to do while I'm training with you?" Harry flinched slightly. "Not occlumency-right?"

"Of course," Tom said with a firm look. "You need to learn to protect your mind against Dumbledore if he is to be around you at school."

"But I can't!" Harry cried indignantly. "Snape tried to teach me, but it never worked."

"That's because the spell Dumbledore put on you," James explained, looking slightly enraged. "Dumbledore is a old, manipulative coot!"

"I guess so," Harry agreed, but turned back to Tom. "So, are you saying I can do occlumency right now if I wanted to? Did the spell on me fall when I entered this place?"

"Yes, with a little practice," Tom said gently, looking pleasantly at Harry. "It won't come quite as easily as you'd like, but you'll master it in no time."

Harry nodded, before looking at Tom curiously. "Will the spell be off me permanently now?"

"Yes, it will," Tom answered. "Which is why, we will have to teach you right away how to control your new powers."

"I don't feel any different," Harry muttered, flexing his fingers.

"Try casting a spell," Lily told him, looking bemused.

Harry pulled out his wand, but Lily shook her head.

"Without a wand," she ordered.

Harry put his wand back in his pocket, looking cynical.

"What, am I supposed to do it wandlessly?" Harry scoffed. "Yeah right. Only Dumbledore and Voldemort can do that!"

"And me and you, Harry," Tom told her, looking highly amused. "You'll see. Dumbledore will be weak compared to you."

Harry raised his eyebrows, shaking his head.

"Just try to stun me, Harry," James told him.

"Ok," Harry said uncertainly, holding out his hand. He opened his mouth to say the spell, but Tom shook his head swiftly.

"What, are you trying to destroy the whole place? You have to do the spell non-verbally too, because you don't know how to control your new powers. It's like you're a child again Harry," Tom explained, with a smirk. "It's like very, very, very, _very_ powerful accidental magic."

Harry stared at him with pure shock. "I can't even do a non-verbal spell!"

"The Harry under the spell couldn't," Lily said impatiently."Honestly, Harry, just stop being so unconfident and try it."

Harry took a deep breath, closed his eyes, holding out his hand, and thought hard in his head about his father being stunned. He opened his eyes abruptly when a wave of power erupted and made him fall over. He wasn't the only one, apparently. His father was lying on the ground, stunned.

"Told you so," said Tom smugly, waving his hand lazily at James, who stood back up and grinned proudly at his son.

"I knew you could do it, cub," he said. "I don't know how you could even doubt yourself. But, hey, next time will you conjure pillows first? My head hurts!"

Tom and Lily laughed at James, while Harry sat there, speechless.

"Are you ever going to get up?" James asked him, grinning.

"That was bloody amazing!" Harry gasped, staring at his body. "What was that feeling?"

"Your power, Harry," Tom said, helping him up. "I told you that you had the power in you. Dumbledore is dark and ambitious, but he is no fool. He knew that the only way he could stay in control is by withholding your powers until he can use you as a tool."

"That's just unreal," Harry said, with a wide grin. "I can't wait to show Ron and Hermione!" He looked in confusion into the grim faces of the adults.

"About that, Harry," Lily said softly, biting her lip. "Your friends are not exactly who I would like you to hang out with."

Harry froze. "What? Why?"

"Dumbledore was having them watch you for him. Ron Weasley is just ambitious and Hermione Granger is just being used. The Weasleys want to look good with everyone, and pretend they are light, but they know what Dumbledore really is."

"Oh," Harry whispered, lowering his eyes.

"But Ginny Weasley knows and she hates her family and Dumbledore," James added, trying to cheer him up. "She is a nice girl, loyal and brave. I've been watching her and she has the ability to become very powerful."

"Not to mention she is very pretty," Tom said, with a smirk.

Harry blushed, but couldn't help the laugh. "I never thought the day would come when Tom Riddle is teasing me about the prettiest girl I know," he joked.

"Oh, so you admit you like her," James said quickly, his eyes brightening. "She's a red-head, so she must be good." He smiled at his wife.

Harry went even redder. "Well I did like Cho Chang, but now that you mention it, Ginny is amazing."

"And she is worth it, not like Cho Chang," Lily said firmly. "Cho needs someone, but not you."

"Ginny doesn't like me, though," Harry said carefully. "I am just her older brother's best friend. Why would she?"

The three adults laughed, shaking their heads.

"Harry, why don't we start occlumecy and try to control your powers," Tom suggested.

Harry eyed his parents who were still trying to stop laughing, and shrugged. Parents would be parents, but most importantly they were his.

"Okay," Harry answered Tom, still rolling his eyes at his parents, but smiled.

He still couldn't believe that he had actual parents. His mom and dad were alive and they had the rest of their lives together.

"Okay, come here Harry," Tom said, breaking him from his thoughts.

Tom signaled for him to follow him to another room. He opened a door and a small room with two pads on the ground that were surrounding by candles, and there was a bookcase made of oak holding many books.

Harry followed Tom and sat down beside him on a pad. Tom turned to him.

"Okay, try to clear your mind of all thoughts," Tom instructed him.

Harry took a deep breath, and pushed away thoughts. He was surprised that it was easier than he expected. It had been an impossible feat when he was practicing clearing his mind with Snape.

"Try to find your calm center."

Harry listened to Tom and tried to think of the thing that made him most calm. He pictured himself riding a broom and relaxed slightly.

"Good, Harry. Now get ready."

Harry tensed and waited for the words that made him visit his memories.

"_Legilimens_!"

Harry tried to push him away, but it started to hurt his head. He saw memories flash by. He was running away from dementors…… He was laughing with his friends…… he was watching Remus Lupin changing into a werewolf……. he was being abused by his uncle…….

Harry pushed with all his might and he found himself back in the room.

"That took you too long, Harry," Tom said softly, leaning in to touch his arm gently. "You don't quite understand what I wanted you to do. Instead of trying to push me out, think of that calm center and push out with that not will."

Harry tried to breath evenly again.

"Your uncle will never harm you again," Tom told him firmly. "I'm not going to stand around and watch you be hurt anymore. I promise."

Harry was still shaking.

Tom pulled him into an embrace, despite the protests from Harry, before pulling away to stare into his face. "You're parents' love you, Harry, and we are here for you."

Harry stared into Tom's eyes and nodded, clearing his mind and got to his calm core.

"I'm ready," Harry whispered with his eyes shut.

"I never thought you weren't," Tom murmured, before, "_Legilimens_!"

Harry breathed in and out steadily, thinking hard about Quidditch and how good it feels. He felt a probe in his mind and he thought even harder about how it feels with the wind against his face, the exhilaration as he emerged from a dive and the feeling that nothing could go wrong, even though the prying had increased and he felt a blast of pain. Before he knew it, the probing stopped and he found himself in the room again.

"Excellent!" Tom praised him, his breathing slightly hitched. "I didn't see a glimpse of one memory. I think you should be fine for now."

Harry smiled, pleased with himself for accomplishing something in occlumency. He couldn't wait to show Snape. Harry suddenly had a dire question he realized might be important later on to know.

"Does Snape know about Dumbledore?" Harry asked.

"No," Tom said. "He doesn't. Dumbledore and Voldemort are still not sure if he is absolutely loyal to the 'greater good'."

Harry's expression of disgust was mirrored by Tom.

"Why did you want to know?" Tom asked curiously.

"Well maybe he should know about you," Harry suggested, looking at Tom intently.

"He knows there is a Tom Marvolo Riddle," Tom said carefully.

"He needs to know the truth of you and Voldemort and Dumbledore," Harry clarified.

"I'll think about it," Tom agreed, but he looked uncertain. He waved his hand and a book flew from the bookshelf to his hand. "This is a book about occlumency. Read it. Breathe it. Live it. Got it?"

Harry nodded, watching in awe as another book fell into Tom's hands with just a wave of his hand.

"This is for you to know how to control your powers," Tom said, handing him an old leather book. "It is written by Salazar Slytherin himself." He looked suddenly stern. "Don't lose it, okay? It's very ancient and extremely valuable. It's the only copy made and it's written in parseltounge."

Harry looked at the book with growing interest. He took it will a reverence, setting it carefully beside him.

"How is it written in parseltounge?" he asked, his forehead creased in concentration. "What does parseltounge look like?"

Tom paused, his forehead creasing as he thought about the questions.

"I'm not sure how Salazar wrote it. Anyways, it looks normal to you," Tom said finally, with slight amusement. "And I can't tell you how it looks because it looks normal to me, as well."

"Oh, yeah, right," Harry mumbled, still staring at the book.

"I put a spell on it so if anyone sees it they think it is a Quidditch book. They also remember they have to do something else if they touch it."

"How did you do that?" Harry said. He glanced at Tom.

Tom smiled. "Maybe I'll teach it to you later."

"Are you going to teach me how to control my powers?"

"Yes," Tom said, crossing his legs and turning to face Harry, who copied his movements. "Now, Harry, take out your wand and try to levitate your occlumency book."

Harry pointed his wand at the book and said clearly, "win_gar_dium levi_o_sa." He felt the rush of power again and was startled when the book hit the ceiling and then came crashing down. Harry turned to Tom sheepishly and Tom was nodding and looking at him reassuringly.

"I thought that would happen," Tom commented. "I wouldn't have been surprised if it exploded. You have more control than I thought you would. Well done."

Harry smiled slightly at the compliment and waited for more instructions.

"Try it again, but this time, try to channel your powers."

"Yes, sir," Harry said, pointing his wand back at the book. He tried to let go of his powers and whispered the spell. The book levitated for a moment, but it hit the ceiling again.

"Closer," Tom said, indicating for him to try it again.

Harry tried again, and to his delight, it floated across the room until he canceled the spell.

Tom grinned, and for a whole hour they went through different spells. Harry began to master control, but he still found it much easier to do things non-verbally or wandlessly or both.

"That's good for today," Tom told him, his voice stinging with approval, clasping him on the back.

Harry lowered his wand, gathered his books, and got up to follow Tom. Tom turned and waved his hands, the candles went out, and they went back to where his parents were. They hugged him tightly, promising they will see him soon.

"Harry," Tom said softly. He offered him a silver necklace. It had a green snake and black writing saying: The cunning always will find their way.

"Thank you," Harry said, putting it around his neck. "What is it for?"

"If you ever need us just say the words 'Gryffindor's Domain' in parseltounge," Tom told him softly. He paused, before adding, "It was Salazar's and he wanted me to give it to you."

"What?"Harry gasped. "_Salazar Slytherin_ _told _you to give it to _me_?"

"Be careful, Harry," Tom said, pulling him into a hug.

Harry opened his mouth to ask more about Salazar Slytherin, but he was interrupted by the giant snake coming to him again.

"Raiden will take you back to Hogwarts."

Before Harry could do anything, the snake leaned in and touched him, sending him spiraling back to Hogwarts. Before the snake disappeared, it hissed, _"Be careful, young heir. You are powerful. Trust yourself and give the other Slytherins a chance. You will be great, Harry Potter……"_

Harry looked around and got off the ground. He was on the ground in the Gryffindor common room. He stared into the flames of the fire, pondering his words. Could the Slytherins possibly be better than he thought they would? Harry wished for once that he was in Slytherin instead of Gryffindor. Then he might have true friends and know how to be clever and cautious instead of reckless.

"Harry!" Ron Weasley exclaimed. He ran towards Harry from the boy's dormitory. "Hermione and I have been looking for you everywhere!"

_I'm sure you have, _Harry thought coldly. He smiled artificially at Weasley, before saying, "Why? I just got back from occlumency lessons."

"Dumbledore was looking for you," Hermione said, coming behind Harry to smile.

Harry realized how clever she must think she is by tricking the Boy-Who-Lived. Well, Harry planned to give her all the trouble he could manage.

"Really?" Harry asked cheerfully. "Maybe he wants to tell me I can't take occlumency lessons with Snape anymore. I guess I've finally driven that old bat mad."

Ron laughed loudly, while Hermione glared at him half-heartedly.

"Strange, nothing different happened." Harry looked at his 'friends' in fake curiosity. "I did leave early form my lesson, but that's all."

"Well you better go see him, mate," Ron said. "He always knows what to do."

Harry nodded and walked out of the dormitory, smirking, and he realized something from Ron's words. They had always been trying to push him to see Dumbledore when something happens. They had wanted him to get closer and closer to him and trust him completely. And the scary thing is that it would have worked.

Harry walked to Dumbledore's office, wondering how freaked out Snape was, and said the first candy he could think of. Eventually, he said "frizzing wizbees" and he was let in. He knocked on the door and waited until he heard Dumbledore say, "Come in."

Harry took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and stepped in to stare into the manipulative twinkling eyes of Albus Dumbledore.

* * *

Severus Snape paced in his study. He wondered what was happening at Hogwarts and what Dumbledore had exactly been doing besides manipulating and using him. He knew that he was a dark wizard.

And where was Harry Potter?

Maybe it was time for him to use polyjuice potion and go undercover at Hogwarts. If Dumbledore wants a spy, he would give Dumbledore a spy.

Snape took off the spells on his body, revealing his short, non-greasy black hair and non-hooked nose and warmer black eyes. His pale skin stayed pale, but was healthier looking.

It was hard being a spy and pretending to be a greasy, ugly, cruel, and favoring bat of the dungeons.

Snape smirked. It was time for him to be a more fun character to play.

He turned and went out the door of his mansion, pondering whose hair he could pull out. Maybe a friend would let him borrow his hair and identity for a short while.

Snape nodded approvingly. He knew that this person he was thinking of was perfect. For him to offer to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher would simply confuse and annoy Dumbledore to no end.

"Good," Snape mused, getting ready to apparate. "Maybe it will be so nerve-racking that Dumbledore will die from it."

Snape sighed, frowning slightly. If only it was that simple.

But Snape knew that it took much talent to annoy Dumbledore to death. This was good, because Snape was ready for a challenge. To be quite frank, tricking Voldemort would be like a walk in the park compared to manipulating Albus Dumbledore.

With that thought in mind, he vanished.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore was staring to grow impatient. He let out a small sigh of frustration.

Where was the stupid Boy-Who-Lived?

Dumbledore turned to stare out the window, thinking hard about the day Harry Potter was first attacked by his fellow lord, Voldemort. That was the day he, the Potter's secret keeper, betrayed them. Everyone thought it was Sirius Black, and even Sirius Black thought it was Peter Pettigrew who really was the betrayer.

When a trial came for Sirius, Peter would be charged and Dumbledore would be safe. No one knew he was the Potter's secret-keeper. Only Lily and James had known and they were dead.

Dumbledore smiled, drumming his fingers on his desk.

Once he found Harry Potter, for he was confident that he would, than his plans would really start to go into motion. He would lead Harry to think of him as a grandfather or mentor and he will help draw out his powers slowly. Dumbledore knew he could release the wards containing his full powers once Harry Potter was completely in his control.

Dumbledore even had plans to turn on Voldemort someday, perhaps. For he was no fool and knew Voldemort would someday plot against him. If there was a small chance at more power than Voldemort would surely remove him. Or at least try to. With Harry Potter, Voldemort would never be able to kill him.

Dumbledore got up and started pacing for a few minutes.

He was slightly worried. He might not be able to make the boy trust him in time before his powers escape. It had already happened in his Fourth year when the Death Eater Crouch put him under the imperius curse and he was the only one in the school to be able to fight it. And he also happened to win the Triwizard Tournament and escape Voldemort.

That infuriated him. Derek was an amateur if he couldn't defeat a fourteen-year-old who had mostly all his powers blocked off. Not to mention, all the Death Eaters were there to help their Lord.

Dumbledore shook his head, clearing his mind, and sat back down. There were no reasons for him to grow anxious. It would be easier to manipulate the boy, especially after his abuse. It would be easy to turn the abused boy to him and towards the dark arts to fight his anger.

Dumbledore exited out of his thought to look at the door when he heard a small knock. Slightly irritated, he guessed it was Ron Weasley or Hermione Granger, the two comrades of Harry Potter he has spy on him. They were probably here to complain about how they checked the castle ten times and Harry Potter isn't anywhere.

"Come in," Dumbledore said briskly, trying to look like a reassuring, wise, and kind grandfather.

He was shocked when he realized he was looking into the emerald eyes of none other than the Boy-Who-Lived.

"Harry, my boy, what a surprise!" he exclaimed, standing up.

Harry stepped into the room to greet him, grinning.

"Hello, professor," Harry said, slightly irritated.

"I hear you weren't being respectful to Professor Snape again," he commented gently.

"Snape is so unfair!" Harry retorted. "Honestly, he gave me a weeks worth of detentions because I was a minute late. I had to leave after a while because it was getting so bad."

Dumbledore gave him a disapproving but bemused look, signaling for him to take a seat, which he accepted.

"He believed you vanished," Dumbledore agreed, raising his eyebrows. "But I do believe there is something else you would like to tell me….." he prompted.

"Yeah," Harry agreed, looking sheepish. "I faked that I was abused to give Snape the shock."

Dumbledore had to use all this will to not show his surprise. Was this true or was the boy lying? The second was much more likely because he had seen the evidence and had expected the Dursleys to abuse him. Harry Potter would never willingly admit he was unable to defend himself against his muggle uncle.

"So you're not abused, my boy?" Dumbledore asked with forced concern.

"No, but I have to admit, my relatives are nothing like the Weasleys," Harry said with a small frown. "But who is?"

"Yes, who is indeed," Dumbledore murmured, watching Harry carefully. "But I am very disappointed in you, Mr. Potter," he said disapprovingly. "You lied and disrespected a teacher."

Harry's face showed great shame. "I'm sorry, sir," he said quietly, not meeting his eyes fully.

"Very well," Dumbledore said, adjusting his spectacles. "I will not punish you."

"Where is Snape?" Harry asked, looking around as if expecting Snape to jump out and expel him.

Dumbledore bowed his head. "It would seem that Severus Snape is a traitor," he said with great regret. "He is in league with Lord Voldemort."

"Snape?" Harry snarled. "I thought so."

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "Tom Riddle has captured yet another talented man and turned him into a weapon for hate and darkness."

"What happened?" Harry questioned, his eyes narrowed.

"He tried to kill me this evening, but managed to escape."

"Are you alright sir?" Harry asked, concerned.

Dumbledore was pleased when Harry seemed to believe him.

"Yes, yes," he said cheerfully. "I'm quite excellent."

Harry nodded.

"Now, run off, my boy," Dumbledore said, with a wave if his hand. "And, next time, don't get us such a scare by disappearing."

"Yes, sir," Harry answered, smiling, before getting up from his seat to leave. He turned and walked out of the room.

Dumbledore let out a relieved sigh, smirking.

Everything was going according to plan now.

* * *

Harry was seething by the time he got back to the common room entrance. He couldn't believe that Dumbledore was trying to trick him. Snape was apparently being taken care of for finding out about his abuse. Harry hoped he escaped from Dumbledore's clutches. The thing that was bugging Harry most was that Dumbledore was trying to turn him against the name Tom Riddle again.

Harry took a deep breath, trying to control the burst of magic begging to blow something up, and concentrated on clearing his mind and putting a smile on his face.

He said the password and stepped into the common room with a fake smile, waving at Hermione and Ron.

It was time for him to earn his degree in acting, lying, and manipulating.

_I will become the best Slytherin ever, _Harry thought fiercely, touching the necklace Tom had given him. _They are in for the time of their pathetic, weak lives._

With a very convincing grin and swagger, Harry had perfected the image he was expected to be, but in the inside he was wondering when he would escape this horrible place of lies and be back with his parents and the leader of the light.


	5. More Complications

**AN: Heres the next chapter! The next one is almost complete so I will update again soon! I promise. Thanks to all you that have reviewed. I appreciate it! Please continue to review! If you have any questions dont hesitate to ask me.**

**Oh, and do u want Hermione to be good or evil? I have a good idea of what I want but I want your opinion.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Only plot. Please don't steal my idea and story!**

**Please Review!!!**

* * *

Harry left that morning to the Great Hall feeling very determined. He had been awoken by Ronald Weasley, who now made him want to burst with anger, and had taken a very refreshing, cold felt much more alert and perceptive after a cold shower then a that shower, he made a vital decision.

He wouldn't hide his powers entierely. Sure, he would still act the same, but he would try harder in his classes.

Harry turned to Ron and Hermione.

"Harry, where are your glasses?" Hermione asked, confused.

"I don't need them anymore," Harry said, shrugging. "My eyes adjusted."

Hermione smiled. "That's great, Harry!"

Harry grinned and nodded. "It is," he agreed.

"What are you so happy about?" Ron asked, grinning back.

Harry couldn't believe he hadn't seen through that grin before now.

"You'll find out soon enough," Harry said cheerfully. "I'm sure Dumbledore will say something."

Hermione looked at him with curious eyes while Ron looked annoyed.

"Why can't you just tell me?" Ron groaned. "You're acting like Hermione lately."

"Oh, shut up, Ron," Hermione snapped, glaring at the red head.

As Harry looked at her, he couldn't possibly believe she was faking anger. She really didn't like Ron.

"Stop fighting guys," Harry said, as they entered the Great Hall.

They continued to glare at each other, taking no notice of what he said.

Harry sighed, shaking his head, before staring at the Slytherin table. In his brief glance, he caught the silver eye of Draco Malfoy. Curious, he turned his whole head to stare at looked different now that Harry didn't hate him. He looked like a guy who was also pretending to be someone could he not have realize the careful, blank mask and disiplined behavior before?

Draco met his eyes squarely, before shaking his head scornfolly and looking away. He sent a glance at his friends in conversation, before joining in.

Harry was sure he hadn't imagined the behavior now. Draco hadn't looked angry or mocking. Just..... calm, cool and very tired.

Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table with Ron and Hermione, turning away. He met the eyes of Ginny Weasley and Neville Longbottom.

"Good morning," Ginny said, smiling.

"Hey, Harry," Neville greeted.

"Hey, Neville," Harry said, before turning to stare at Ginny.

He hesitated, knowing he was sure to make a fool of himself around her now.

"Hey, Ginny," he murmured, his face going hot.

She looked at him in surprise, her eyes watching him carefully.

"What's your next class?" Neville asked, staring at Harry.

Harry looked away, realizing Neville was talking to him. "Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"But we don't have a teacher," Neville commented, confused.

"Why not?" Hermione asked.

"Professor Lupin is still not here," Neville answered. "He's been gone for about two weeks."

Everyone at the table looked worried.

"Snape has been teaching the classes," Ron complained. "It's been dreadful!"

"I hope Professor Lupin is okay," Hermione said anxiously.

Harry looked at her and decided she was sincere about that.

"Me too," Ginny agreed.

"Me three," Harry said, smiling at Ginny.

Ginny smiled back at Harry lightly right when a huge amount of owls swooped into the hall. Harry turned and found his own white owl, Hedwig, dropping a newspaper at the table. Harry grabbed it quickly.

**DEATH EATER SEVERUS SNAPE ON THE RUN**

**Hogwarts in need of new teachers**

Harry laughed at the headline, grinning at his stunned friends.

"No more Snape," Harry said triumphantly.

"No more Snape," Ron mouthed in awe, his eyes wide.

"This isn't funny, Harry," Hermione said seriously, folding her arms impatiently. "Snape was supposed to be our spy, but he was feeding us false information and Voldemort got all the right information."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, it's good we know his true light now. That cruel, dark bat."

"I doubt Dumbledore needed a spy as much as you think," Ginny said quietly.

Everyone turned to stare at Ginny. Harry met her eyes, his eyes narrowed. Did she know?

"And why do you think that?" Hermione asked slowly.

Ginny shrugged, still staring at Harry. "Just a thought," she said carelessly.

"Attention students," a voice spoke loudly and pleasantly.

Everyone stopped talking and turned to Dumbledore.

Dumbledore extended his arms, smiling gravely at the students. "I am sorry to say that Remus Lupin has retired from teaching, as well as Severus Snape. It seems that both have been in league with the Dark Lord."

Shocked silence met his words.

"Professor Lupin is with Voldemort?" Hermione gasped, shaking her head.

Harry listened intently, wondering if Lupin had also discovered the truth of Albus Dumbledore and had the same fate as Snape.

"Because of the loss of two teachers, all Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potion classes are cancelled," the Headmaster continued. "I assure you that we will have new teachers soon and everything will precede like normal." Dumbledore paused, smiling even wider now. "Good day to everyone of you," he said, before sitting back down.

Harry turned to his friends as everyone else in the Great Hall did. It was very loud and noisy, but Harry spoke quietly and could be heard.

"Well, hopefully our two new teacher aren't anything like Professor Snape."

Hermione glared at him. "Don't you care about Professor Lupin's betrayal?"

Harry glared at her. "Of course I do!" he snapped, before getting up abruptly. "I just didn't want to talk about the one adult I thought I could trust being another adult I can't!"

With a final glare, Harry strided out the doors of the great hall and headed to his room to read the books he recieved from Tom. Harry smirked. This latest explosion should earn him at least two hours alone, especially with two classes cancelled.

Being Harry Potter was getting easier and easier.

Harry sighed.

He really needed to think on what to do now, what happened to Remus Lupin and Severus Snape, and when he can finally see his parents and Tom again. It felt like ages ago since he was training with Tom and laughing with his parents.

Harry touched the necklace, his eyes distant.

To be positive, at least he was having a little fun acting 'himself'.

To be negative, which Harry usually was, he had no chance on acting like this forever without killing someone.

Harry quickly said the password to the fat lady and went to the boys' dormitory. He grabbed the thick book on controlling your powers and sat down on his bed. With a quick glance around the empty room, he began to read the book. Harry took in more and more information as minutes passed and he realized how interesting this was. It wasn't just about controlling your powers, but also using different levels if power and learning many useful, strong spells.

If only his classes were like this.

Harry paused from his reading, considering that last thought. Maybe his classes were this interesting, but he never tried to apply the information or make it seem important.

Harry turned back to the book thoughtfully, but stopped immediently when he heard footsteps.

Harry shut the thick book just as Ron came up the stairs.

"There you are, Harry," Ron said, irritated. "Why do you always act like only your life is hard and yell at us?"

Harry fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Well, Ron, maybe its because I'm the one who has to fight Voldemort over and over again," Harry said calmly. "And I never said I was the only one with a hard life."

Ron snorted. "Well you sure act like it," he retorted.

Harry stared at him coldly.

Ron bit his lip, looking away, but his eyes still blazed with anger. "Sorry, mate," Ron said reluctantly. "I didn't mean that."

Harry nodded. "It's okay," he said.

Ron glanced at the book. "A Quidditch book? Do you mind if I look at it sometime?"

"No, not at all," Harry said, with an amused smile.

Ron grinned back, before motioning to the door. "We better get going for Transfiguration."

"Yeah, I guess," Harry said, placing the ancient book carefully in his book bag and getting up.

They walked out of the dormitory and Hermione met them.

"Hey Harry," she said pleasantly, not acknowledging Ron. "Sorry about earlier," she added softly. "I was being very unsensitive. I just can't believe Snape and then Lupin."

Harry nodded, wishing he could use legilimency to see if she really meant that. He stopped, intruged by that idea.

"Harry?" Ron asked when he stopped.

Harry continued on with them, nodding to what they were saying while thinking about legilimency. Maybe Tom would teach him.....

The three of them stepped into the classroom and took the only empty seats by the Slytherins. Harry sat down reluctantly by Draco Malfoy, who automatically made a comment on how stupid Gryffindors were.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Ron snapped.

"I only speak the truth, Weasley," Draco sneered back.

"If we're stupid, then what would that make you, Malfoy?" Harry asked, glaring at Draco.

Draco glared back, but before he could answer, Professor McGonagall walked in.

"Today, we will be talking more about non-verbal transfiguration of objects," McGonagall said loudly, ending all conversations.

And she began her lecture, and Harry listened intently, despite the glares from the Slytherins.

"Does anyone know why Dougrey had trouble with transfiguring the pen into a sword?" she asked after a while.

Harry raised his hand at the same time as Hermione, recalling his reading from earlier. McGonagall looked at him in surprise.

"Mr. Potter?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.

"His spell was altered by the incorrect wave of his arm. For the spell he was trying to perform, you have to wave your wand clockwise and have less movement. He, however, waved his wand counterclockwise and had excess wand action. He discovered this two weeks later, after much trials. Furthermore, it wasn't powerful enough to make a sword that actually could be used. If Dougrey had said the spell verbally it would have been a decent sword, but because he hadn't yet prefected the spell it wouldn't react as powerfully non-verbal as verbal. As well as that is, non-verbal spells are never as powerful as verbal spells without first learning how to direct the power of the verbal core to the non-verbal core. The non-verbal core of you magic is much more powerful, but most wizards and witches cannot use that power to its maximum. The spell fails because the wizard or witch can't supress the overwhelming power to a managable level in the core."

Harry stopped, realizing everyone was staring at him in shock, including the professor. McGonagall had a distant expression.

Harry bit his lip, furious with himself. He hadn't meant to get carried away, but he understood it so well. It was just too interesting.

"Thirty points to Gryffindor, Mr. Potter," McGonagall finally broke the silence briskly. "That was an excellent answer."

"The Boy-Who-Lived can do no wrong," Draco muttered, his voice burning with anger.

Harry stayed quiet for the rest of the period, trying to ignore Hermione who was staring at him with narrowed eyes.

He glanced at Draco occasionly, wondering how to make contact with him. He settled with the best idea he could think of, and scribbled down a small note to him.

_D.M_

_Meet me in the astromony tower tomorrow night at !0:30._

_I need to talk to you._

_Tell no one._

_H.P_

_P.S. Burn this. _

Harry folded it and slipped it into Draco's book bag, hoping he would find it. And if he did find it, Harry hoped Draco would come and talk to him.

The bell rang then and Harry got up, glancing at his friends. They were both occupied by their thoughts as the three of them walked back to the common room. There, Hermione and Ron started fighting again.

"Harry, are you going to come to dinner?" Ron asked after an hour had passed.

Harry nodded, follwing them to the great hall. He ate dinner laughing at his friends and joining in the conversation, but in the inside feeling secluded. Harry asked Ginny a lot of question when Hermione and Ron were fighting and learned many things about her. As he stared into her eyes, he couldn't help but forgetting were he was. He was caught up in her answers and baffled by her expressions.

When he looked up when dinner was about to end, he realized that McGonagall was staring at him. Uneasy, he followed his fellow Gryffindors to the common room and collapsed on his bed, claiming he was tired.

For hours after others were asleep, he worried about how to keep his act, about where Snape and Lupin were, on who he can trust, on why Hermione seemed so sincere, on Ginny and her endless surprises, and on McGonagall, who had a new interest in him.

He eventually fell asleep, but didn't get the peace he wanted.

At first it was just a normal dream, but then it changed. It seemed colder and more real. A thick mist made it impossible for him to see. After walking blindlessly for what seemed forever, it faded away.

He was in the graveyard. Harry pulled out his wand quickly. With growing feeling of dread, he walked towards the two figures.

"We have a guest," a familiar voice hissed.

Harry stepped away, his blood cold at the sound of the voice. "Voldemort," he said angrily.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort sneered, his red eyes blazing. He indicated to a girl standing next to him. "Come to visit me and my daughter?"

Harry met the eyes of the lean, beautiful girl next to Voldemort. Her light green eyes cut into his emerald eyes with confidence. She tossed her pale red hair behind her shoulders as she gave him an arrogant smirk with her full, red-colored lips. She stood with dignified grace, power, and passion.

Harry was stunned.

Voldemort had a daughter.

And she reminded him of another girl he knew...... another girl with red hair.... and a way of making him feel speechless.

"No," Harry gasped.

He heard Voldemort's laughs as he suddenly woke up from the nightmare. The question was whether it really was a nightmare or was a vision.

Harry grabbed his punding head and tried to ignore the searing pain from his scar.

It defiently wasn't a nightmare. Voldemort had a daughter. And more than anything, Harry wanted to see her again.

Harry took a deep breath.

As if he didn't have enough problems.


	6. Losing control

I updated!!! SO... please review. Thanks to all you that have reviewed.

I know a lot of you have questions on a lot of things, but you will just have to read to find out or I would ruin it for you.

Disclaimer: do not own Harry Potter. only own plot.

So enjoy this chapter. It's the longest yet. And if you have any question just ask. Not guaranteeing I'll answer, but......

anyways please please review!!!

* * *

Harry walked into the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione, glancing around until he noticed Ginny. He quickly claimed the seat next to her, but she seemed oblivious to him. Short-tempered from the lack of sleep, his emotions begin to slip.

"Good morning," Harry said shortly, watching the back of her head.

"Good morning," she said pleasantly, turning around but not quite meeting his eyes.

Harry stared at her calmly, but he felt like screaming. Why was she suddenly acting like this? He already had doubts of his mental state after he imagined her and Voldemort daughter being the same person.

"Have you ever had the strangest feeling like you know someone, but then something comes up that completely destroys that?" he asked, his eyes narrowed.

She looked startled, but not surprised. She shrugged, giving him an innocent smile.

"I know the feeling. Like yesterday? This guy was acting _very _different. Odd, really."

She met his eyes squarely for once. Harry stared into her eyes, searching for a similarity. He found none. There was no resemblance between the elegant, sharp green eyes and the kind, gentle brown eyes.

Harry looked away. The way she was speaking, it was like she knew _something_. But how would she hide who she was? She had been with Ron until the very beginning. How could she not be a Weasley? Perhaps she was placed there to be watched over. Or had she been placed there as Voldemort's daughter for a reason? Had she been placed there to spy on _him_?

Now Harry knew he was being paranoid. Ron and Hermione could do that. There had to be another reason.

Harry shook this head. He was getting carried away. He didn't even know if she was Voldemort's daughter. What explained her appearance?

Glamour charms. Polyjuice potion. Maybe she was a Metamorphmagus. There had to be a few dark spells that could alter appearance for a little bit.

Harry got up abruptly, shaking his head. He could hardly believe that Ginny Weasley could be related to that monster. There was no way. How could he be thinking that? He practically ran to the door, but stopped suddenly when he heard a loud, high-pitched noise. Harry spun around to see plates shatter. He froze, wondering what to do.

Then the lights went out.

Screams were heard around the great hall.

"_Lumos _won't work!" A voice screamed.

"Why can't I light anything?" another voice added.

"I can't see anything!"

"Students!" Dumbledore yelled through the noise. "Remain calm!"

No one listened. The sudden terror had made everyone insensible.

Harry tried to calm his angry emotions and his new panicked emotions. He knew he had done this. He had felt his control slip away slowly by the minute. It finally exploded. Taking a deep breath, he focused on his magic.

Perhaps he could bring back the light.

Concentrating on his core of power, he waved his wand.

"Lumos!" he whispered.

Nothing happened.

He felt anger and fear build up.

Why couldn't he control his powers when he wanted to?

He directed the power without knowing, as he closed his eyes and thought fiercely about the Great Hall lighting up once again. Without even opening his eyes, he could tell it was brighter. Shocked, his eyes opened quickly, staring around the room.

He watched the confused and flustered teachers. When he turned to the Gryffindor house he noticed Ron and Hermione yelling to him.

"Harry, where are you going?" Ron yelled.

Harry turned away to meet Ginny's eyes. Her eyes pierced into his, a knowing look in them.

Taking a step back, he looked away. He meant to leave, but he realized something. Professor McGonagall was staring at him. Her eyes cut into him, suspicious but also puzzled.

Without a second thought, he left the hall in a hurry. Sprinting down the halls, he found himself heading towards the seventh floor. He quickly thought, _I need a place to hide._ He paced three times in front of the blank wall across from the large tapestry, repeating his request. When he stopped, he found a large door in place of the wall. Harry quickly went into the room.

He found himself surrounded by objects. Shelves and shelves of objects littered the room. The floor was covered in everything; random, common, unknown, small, large, and colorful objects.

Harry took a deep breath and grabbed his necklace.

"Gryffindor's Domain," he said clearly.

With a tug that reminded him of a portkey, he felt himself spinning away from Hogwarts. He landed face first on hard floor.

Getting up, he surveyed the large room where he had first been sent to by Raiden, Tom's snake.

Harry walked slowly to the large bookcase, reading the names of the books in interest. He reached for a black book with silver inscription he couldn't understand, carefully pulling it away from the ebony bookcase. He pulled it out and stared at the cover. It was written in a language Harry didn't know.

Harry opened the first page carefully and was shocked to see that it was hand-written. It was neat, sharp hand-writing. He read it eagerly, pleased that this time it was in English.

_There are many spells and curses in the Wizarding World that professors keep hidden from their students. It seems that these spells are the certain ones needed to really survive when fighting against an enemy. This is a book of spells, curses, hexes, charms, and jinxes that your professors never dared to teach you. Just because they never had the nerve to teach you spells that they considered to advance, or difficult, or even dark arts, doesn't mean you shouldn't learn them._

_This book will teach you the spells to survive._

Harry turned from the introduction to the first page.

_Chapter I_

_Redirecting the enemy_

_The Catalyst Curse_

_A spell-considered dark by most-that is one of the most useful spells to escape. This curse motivates the opposing wizard or witch to do what the caster would like. It works somewhat like the Imperius Curse (see page 41), but is weaker. It allows the caster to plant a seed of doubt into the enemy, just enough for the caster to escape. The stronger the power of the user, and the stronger the emotions and control of the user, finalizes whether of not this spell with be a success. Thus, it can be a good or poor spell according to capacities._

_Incantation: Calio Imperis_

Harry thought the incantation in his head repeatedly, committing it to memory. He turned the next page, just as he heard a voice. He shut the book quickly, meeting green eyes.

"Harry," Tom greeted, smiling. He indicated to the book. "I see you've found something of interest."

Harry nodded, glancing back at the book.

"And what have you learned? Tom asked.

"Only the Catalyst Curse," Harry said, shrugging.

Tom nodded, looking distant. "And the incantation?" he questioned.

"Cali_o _Im_per_i_us_," Harry recited.

Tom nodded, pleased.

"Now what are you here for, Harry?" Tom asked.

Harry bit his lip, wondering whether to tell Tom about his lapse of power or not.

Deciding not to, he put his shields up hard.

"Just for more training," Harry lied, meeting his eyes squarely.

"And your shields are up, it seems," Tom said softly. "So you are trying to hide something?"

Harry looked at him blankly, until a look of confusion came onto his face. "What? I didn't even notice my shields were up."

Tom sighed. "I already know, Harry," he said quietly, shame in his eyes. "Am I that kind of person that you're afraid to tell me you failed once?"

Harry looked away. "I'm sorry," he said, uncertain. "I just didn't want to disappoint you. I lost my control-"

"Oh, Harry," Tom interrupted gently. "You can never disappoint me. You did very well for your first two days."

Harry nodded, but still looked embarrassed. "Where are my Mom and Dad?" he asked.

"They will be here shortly," Tom said his eyes no longer grave. "They just had to finish the potion they were making."

"What potion?" Harry asked, curious.

"They will tell you when they get here," Tom said, his expression amiable.

Harry nodded, his eyes searching for a hint. Millions of questions were dying to come out, but Harry didn't voice any. He stayed silent, waiting patiently for his parents.

A few minutes had passed until Harry finally heard footsteps. His parents walked into the room, smiling at him.

"Hello, Harry," his father greeted him, beaming.

His mother wrapped him in an embrace. "How are you, dear?" she asked when she released him. She placed her hand on his face gently.

"I'm fine," he said quietly, not meeting her eyes.

"No your not," James said just as quietly, watching him carefully.

"Don't lie to _me_, Harry James Potter!" Lily scolded.

Harry looked at his parents sheepishly, before looking grim. "You really don't want to know," he warned them.

"It's okay, Harry," Tom said, walking closer to them. "Go ahead and tell us."

"Let's sit on the couch while we discuss this," James added, pulling his wife delicately away from Harry.

Harry and Tom shared a brief glance before following. Harry sat next to Tom while Lily and James were on the other couch facing the fireplace. A fire blazed in the marble fireplace, ignited the shadowed area.

"So, tell us what's on your mind," Tom said, when they were all settled. He stared closely at Harry, encouraging him with a small smile.

Harry looked at them, wondering what to say.

"It's good to start at the beginning," Tom supplied, when he hesitated.

Harry glared at him. "Really? I was thinking of starting at the end."

But, nevertheless, he began to explain how hard it has been for him.

"Knowing my friends have been lying to me...... it just feels like I have no one," Harry explained, staring into the fire deeply as he tried to express what he was feeling. "I've never tried making new friends since I've met Ron and Hermione."

He was so caught up in what he was saying, he didn't notice when the three adults shared a look.

"I just don't know how to keep up this act anymore," Harry continued, his hand coming to his face. He rested that arm on his knee and he leaned on it. "It makes me feel so angry all the time and I feel like its holding me back. I feel so pressured! Why couldn't I just be a normal teenager who isn't afraid of answering a question a teacher asks? Or doesn't have to worry about the war?"

"Harry," Lily interrupted quietly, her eyes sad. "You are an incredible young man. You don't deserve this, but it is something that you can withstand. There aren't many who can."

"I wonder why?" Harry said quietly, meeting their eyes for once, as his hand fell away from his face and he sat up. "I'm so used to having to fight and lie to survive. I was chosen that very first year of life to have a life of horror and pain. It's not even a life."

They stared at him, not knowing what to say. They felt dreadful as they stared into his eyes and noticed how broken he looked.

"And I have to worry about everything!" Harry said quickly and fiercely. "About how to act, and why Hermione always seems so sincere, and where Snape and Remus are, also why McGonagall is so interested in me, and Ginny, and not to mention Voldemort's daughter!"

"Voldemort's daughter?" Lily questioned her eyes intense.

"Remus and Snape?" James repeated, his eyes narrowed in concern.

"McGonagall?" Tom asked, suddenly very interested, his eyes distant. "Minerva McGonagall?"

Harry looked at them, not quite sure who to answer.

"Explain," James demanded, his voice sharp. "Don't skip anything."

So Harry began to tell them about Hermione.

"She's a clever girl," Lily said. "She could just be a good actress."

"Or maybe she isn't a threat like we thought," James said seriously, his eyes thoughtful. "Maybe she is trying to work against Dumbledore."

Harry shook his head. "It's not exactly like that. I can't really explain it, but she seems so.... forced and then suddenly very sincere. I wish I knew what she really thought and felt."

Harry paused, building up courage. He turned to Tom.

"Will you teach me legilimency?" Harry asked slowly.

Tom started at that direct question, having been unfocused earlier. "Legilimency? You?" He narrowed his eyes, thinking it over. "Let me think about it."

Harry nodded, hoping he would decide it was all right.

Then, when no one had anything to add on the mystery of Hermione Granger, he was about to move on.

"Why don't we just view your memory, Harry?" Tom suggested. "It would be much easier."

Without an answer, he waved his hand and a small, golden pensieve fell into his hand.

"If you will?" he said, handing the pensieve to Harry.

Harry took it carefully, and recalled how Snape did it before every occlumency lesson. He brought his wand to his temple, thinking hard about the past two days, and slowly extracted the memory. The silver, wispy things came out and he directed them to the golden object.

Harry turned to his parents before fixing his gaze on Tom.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked.

They each stood up and nodded, walking closer to Harry. They leaned towards the goblet-like object in unison, before falling into Harry's latest memories.

"So Voldemort has a daughter," Tom said quietly, his eyes grim as they came out of the pensieve.

Harry hesitated, not quite sure what to say.

"You are worried about Ginny, aren't you?" Lily added, watching Harry carefully. "You think she is Voldemort's daughter, don't you? That's why you lost control, right?"

Harry nodded, surveying the three adults silently.

"If that's so, then perhaps there is more to Ginny then I had previously thought," Tom said seriously as he stared at James, waiting for his opinion.

James looked thoughtful. "She seems so against Dumbledore," he said, his eyes narrowed. "Is that all an act? Is it really the other way around?"

"But how could she be Voldemort's daughter?" Harry cut in quickly, avoiding their curious eyes.

It was silent for a moment.

"Harry," Lily said softly, leaning in to touch his arm gently. "There is something we need to tell you."

Harry looked up, slightly wary. There was something they hadn't told him?

"There are many of Voldemort's followers that are spies for us," Tom said, nodding to Harry. "That would be the Malfoys, the Greengrasses, the Lestranges, and the Zabinis."

Harry stared at him in astonishment, but before he could say anything, James started to explain.

"Tom was friends with Abraxas Malfoy, Ridge Greengrass, Wyler Lestrange, and Jarvis Zabini. They knew of the true intentions that Voldemort and Dumbledore had. At first, they agreed with them, but once they realized that there was a mission to eventually kill Tom, they secretly worked against him. Tom then escaped to this room after about a month on the run. They stayed in contact and to this day, there descendents are still Tom's supporters."

Harry stared at the three of them, taking in the information quickly. "So Draco Malfoy isn't as he pretends to be? So he will accept my request to meet him tonight?"

"It's an act," Tom verified, his eyes shut as he nodded. He opened them after a few seconds of concentration.

"What does this have to do with Ginny?" Harry asked, puzzled.

"They have mentioned a few times," James continued breathlessly, "of a girl that looked like what we saw in your memory. They have seen her briefly and wondered who she was. We believe the time to reveal who she really is about to come. It seems that there was an unexpected meeting today."

"And we have yet to here from them," Lily added, concerned.

Tom continued to look into the flames as the three of them turned to him. He was silent as he thought about what had just been learned.

Finally, he turned and locked eyes with Harry.

"You have to make her trust you, Harry," Tom said quietly. "I believe I know her mission, and I think she is doing it very well. But she has quite a few complications and that can help you."

"What complications?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowed. "And you think you know her mission?"

"Her mission is simple," Tom said intently. "To make you fall in love with her and for her to bring you to her father."

Harry shook his head. "That can't be it," he argued. "She was always so shy and impersonal. If she wanted me to like her-"

"That's exactly it," Tom said, interrupting him. "That either means that she thinks you're the kind of guy who would like people like that, she was like that at that age, or she didn't want you to fall in love with her." He paused. "Or maybe she liked you," he added.

Harry looked at him, not quite sure what to think.

"Or maybe a combination of a few of them or maybe even all of them," he added, smirking at Harry's stricken face. "So her complications at the moments are that you guessed her true identity and she is starting to fall in love with you."

Harry shook his head. There was no way anyone could possibly feel all that, but he sure wasn't going to tell Tom Riddle that.

"Tom," Harry said boldly. "If Ginny really is the Dark Lord's daughter, does it even matter?"

Tom glared at him. "Of course it matters, Harry! The only way to figure her out is to know everything about her and what her motives are and how to make her doubt what s1he stands for. Without this we are nothing! Nothing!"

Harry was taken aback. He glanced at his parents and was shocked to find they were laughing. Harry stared at them until they stopped.

"Give Harry a break, Tom," James said, still amused. "He doesn't know how you are about riddles and puzzles."

"Really, your last name is quite ironic," Lily added, smiling.

Tom smiled back, but his eyes were still determined and hard.

"What I was trying to say," Harry said quietly. "Was we should first worry about how Ginny could possibly be Voldemort's daughter."

The three adults shared a look, before nodding in agreement.

"So Ginny could be using polyjuice potion," Harry said, watching them. "And-"

"Not polyjuice potion, Harry," Tom said quietly, thoughtful. "I don't think there was ever a Ginny Weasley to begin with. I'm pretty sure we can take that one off the list."

"But they could have found someone that looks like Ginny Weasley would have looked," Harry protested, folding his arms across his chest as he defiantly looked at Tom.

Tom looked at Harry thoughtfully, but shook his head. "It's not likely, but I'll consider it."

"And glamour charms?" James asked, making Tom and Harry turn to listen to him.

"I don't know a spell that creates a glamour that someone can't recognize the aura of. I'm sure anyone advance enough would have been able to notice," Lily said, answering James seriously. "Like Poppy Pomphrey."

"Or you," James said gently, smiling.

Lily smiled pleasantly, blushing slightly.

Harry stared at her for a long moment, before suddenly realizing that meant the option was eliminated.

"Ginny saw Madam Pomphrey in second year after she was taken into the chamber of secrets," Harry reminded them. "And I'm sure she's been in there after that."

Everyone nodded, before turning to Tom.

"That leaves two options. She's either a Metamorphmagus or she did a blood ritual."

Harry watched Tom curiously. "A blood ritual?"

"Yes," Tom said. "It changes the users' looks completely and alters the person's appearance to be similar to the donator of the blood. It usually is used for adopted children, but its very dark magic."

"But that wouldn't work," Harry said, shaking his head. "When I saw her she reminded me of Ginny, but she wasn't Ginny."

"I think you must have recognized her aura, Harry," Tom said, his eyes pensive. "There is no other explanation for you being able to sense her like that."

Silence met those words and the adults thoughtfully looked at each other. Harry stared into the flames, considering what Tom had suggested.

"So she's a Metamorphmagus," James concluded.

"Yes, I believe so," Tom agreed, his eyes narrowed. "She must have developed it the same way Harry is going to."

Harry shook his head. "That is _if _Ginny is Voldemort's daughter. I mean I only thought of her then, it doesn't mean...." Harry broke off suddenly, before refocusing on Tom again. "Did you just say I'm going to become a Metamorphmagus?" he asked slowly.

The three adults smiled.

"We made a potion for you, Harry," Lily explained, her eyes appraising his reaction. "It will help extract all your hidden powers. We ran a test on you when you were born on what your powers would be. Metamorphmagus was one of the powers."

Harry stared at her, astonished. "I will be able to change my appearance at will?"

"Yes," James answered, grinning. "But we expect you don't cause too much mischief."

Harry sighed, not distracted by the new power. "So there is a great possibility Ginny really is Voldemort's daughter?"

"Yes, and no," Tom said quietly. "But with your new powers it will sure help you find out."

"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked, his eyebrows raised.

Tom smiled. "Ginny may expect that you are realizing the truth, but she never guessed that you gained your powers back and you are with us. Her ignorance will be a great advantage."

"So Voldemort has never suspected that you three are alive?" Harry questioned seriously.

"No, he doesn't know," Tom confirmed. He smiled.

Harry nodded. "So what other powers will I have?" he asked, curious.

"You will have to see, Harry," Lily answered, smiling widely. "But trust me you won't feel weak then."

Harry paused, wondering what that could mean for him. "But I can't even control my powers now, how will I with more power?" he asked, anxious and feeling dangerous as he stared at his hands.

"It will help you have your full control, Harry," James said, grinning. "So don't worry."

Harry bit his lip, glancing at Tom for a second opinion.

"It will still be hard, Harry," Tom said quietly, his expression unreadable. "I won't lie to you. But you will have us to help you learn control, and I know you will be okay."

"But okay isn't good enough!" Harry said loudly, getting up abruptly. "I can't lose control again! What if I hurt an actual person next time?"

"Harry," Lily said gently, reaching out to touch him.

He flinched away by instinct. Fear crashed all his senses and power overcame him. He couldn't hold back, just like earlier. He knew the rushing feeling, the pounding of his heart, and the thrill of strength. Harry could feel the bands breaking and his own will snapping.

"Harry," James said more loudly, worried.

Harry shook his head, trying to stop. But he felt the power begin to pour out. It was slow at first, but then it released quickly.

The room shook slightly around him and the huge bookcase gave an enormous shudder before crashing to the ground. The lights flickered off and on and the fire in the fireplace expanded nearly three times the size as it was previously. The couches were slashed by a great force, and Harry fell onto his knees.

The next thing he knew, Tom Riddle raised his hand and Harry fell into darkness before seeing a flash of white light. He fell onto the floor unconscious.

"Maybe he's not ready," Lily said quietly, her eyes full of concern as she leaned down to touch her son.

Tom waved his wand around the room, repairing the damage. "He is," he said. "Today has just been a hard day. He's been through too much for his mind to handle. To be honest I was surprised and very impressed at how well he has managed."

James shook his head, before levitating his son onto the newly unslashed couch. "He is such a powerful young man. But he has been through too much."

"The abuse was hard on him," Lily said sadly, her eyes downcast. "Did you see him flinch away?"

James wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay, Lily," he said lightly. "He just has to adapt to the change. He knows you would never harm him."

Tom watched the two silently, before turning to observe the unconscious Harry Potter.

There was definitely some hard times ahead, but he knew that this boy would have the power to survive.

"Sleep well, Harry," Tom Riddle whispered. "For when you wake up it will become even worse. It has only just begun."

At those words, the leader of the light turned away, wondering why Harry Potter always caused so many problems.


	7. New Friendships

**I'm sorry!!! I know it took forever but I'm in the transitions of sport seasons so tryouts are crazy and I'm playing another sport at the same time, not to mention school and whatever else!**

**Well, heres the next chapter. Any questions just ask......**

Harry woke up, feeling better than he had for a while. He looked around the room, slightly panicked when he realized it wasn't the Gryffindor common room, but relaxed as he realized he was at Gryffindor's Domain.

"How did I get here?" he asked himself quietly, looking for Tom or his parents.

He concentrated, until a rush of memories came. Then he remembered. With his head pounding, he pressed his finger to his necklace.

"Hogwarts," Harry sighed, wanting to get away.

With a swift lurch, he was transported back to Hogwarts. He caught a glimpse of Tom's dissaproving expression on his face seconds before, and was surprised that Tom had caught him sneaking away.

Harry landed lightly on his feet, and he looked around to see he was in the room of requirements once again. Harry walked quickly out of the room, checking his watch to see that many hours had passed, when he reached the common room. It was just past eight.

Ron and Hermione jumped up from the couch when they saw him.

"Where have you been?" Hermione scolded.

"Yeah, mate, we've been looking everywhere for you," Ron added.

"Sorry, I've been feeling sick," Harry said. "I slept for a while, and then I went out to get some fresh air."

"We didn't see you sleeping here," Hermione said suspiciously.

"I got up and used the bathroom a lot," Harry said. "Throwing up and stuff."

Hermione embraced. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she said quietly. "Why haven't you gone to Madam Pomphrey?" she asked when she pulled away.

"You know me," Harry said, shrugging. "Just didn't want to make a fuss."

"Harry James Potter-"

"I'm going to bed," Harry interrupted. "I'm feeling a lot better, but I'm exhausted."

And with that he turned and went to the dormitory. He was pleased to see no one there. Harry reached into his bag to read more of his book, when he found a vial filled with a purple liquid. Harry lifted it up, and took off the note attached to it.

Harry, it read.

_I knew that you would leave the moment you woke up. So here is your potion. Take it before you go to bed. You might wake up with a headache, but other then that you will feel normal. Experiment a little, but don't cause too much trouble. If you have any problems make sure you come to me. That's very important, because if anything went wrong with the potion it could be fatal._

_Have fun. And don't feel so bad. We are very proud of you. We love you._

_Love always,_

_Your mother_

Harry felt a flicker of happiness to receive a letter from his mother who was expressing love and care. He looked at the bottle curiously, before placing it by his nightstand and grabbing his book, trying to conquer his lack of control through research. He read for about an hour, with no disturbances, before feeling tired, and downed the potion quickly. He laid down, and before he knew it, he was in a dreamless sleep.

* * *

When Harry awoke, his mind felt groggy. He stretched his stiff muscles, before getting out of bed. He looked around the dormitory, and realized he was one of the last ones up. Ron and Dean were still sound asleep. He walked to the mirror, rubbing his eyes. He peered into it carefully, checking to see if anything was altered by the potion. When he was certain that nothing changed, he sent another look at the sleeping boys. He was satisfied by their even breathing, so he closed his eyes and focused. If he thought about his hair being perfectly straight and a bright red.....

Harry opened his eyes, before freezing in shock.

His hair wasn't messy anymore, but a smooth mop of hair that he actually liked. His hair was the brightest red he had ever seen, which made him feel like a ultra-Weasley.

Harry quickly thought for the red to change back to black, and he sighed in relief when it was back to normal.

He may like red heads, but he didn't want to be one, especially to that extreme. It just didn't suit him.

Harry thought for a moment of his eyes changing to blue, but to his discouragement, they didn't change.

He sighed. Maybe he needed to practice more before he could do a lot at the same time.

Pleased by his new hair, Harry quickly changed. He was about to wake up Ron, when he had a sudden idea.

He grabbed the empty bottle from the potion, which was currently on the floor, and his wand on his nightstand. He waved his wand at it, and watched it changed into a type of container. Harry grabbed a container holding hair gel that never worked from his bag, and squirted it in there.

Now he had an explanation for his new hairstyle. Magically enchanced hair gel that he had been given and forgotten about.

Nodding his head in approval, Harry walked to Ron and Dean to wake them up. With an idea of water in his head, he smirked like the secret Slytherin snake he was.

* * *

Harry kept laughing through breakfast as Ron and Dean grumbled to everyone else about how Harry had "accidently" poured a bucket of water over their heads.

"Harry, what's with the new hair?" seemed to be the most popular question of the morning.

He explained to them all about his new hair gel, until he started to get annoyed. He stood on top of the desk and amplified his voice.

"Attention students of Hogwarts!" he yelled, smirking at the dumbstruck look from the teachers. "Since you're all wondering about my new hair, I'll clear it up now! I used a magical hair gel! That is all!"

Harry sat down; his eyebrow raised at the Gryffindor's stunned looks.

"That was very-" Hermione started, but was interrupted quickly.

"Cool!" Ron said.

"Awesome!" Neville added.

Until other students added all their admirations.

"That was so brave!"

"That was hilarious!"

"I can't believe you did that!"

"I only told everyone I used a new hair gel," Harry muttered. "It's not like I slayed a dragon or something."

Harry did his best to ignore his fellow peers, and made a mental note to _never _do that again.

Harry glanced at the end of the table where Ginny was sitting, before getting to his feet to sit next to her.

"Hey Ginny," he said carefully.

Ginny smiled at him. "Hi, supermodel," she teased, laughing. "How's the hair modeling going?"

Harry snorted, rolling his eyes. "You don't want to know," he said grimly, flashing wary looks at the rest of the students.

"They're acting like you just pranked Snape to the next century or something," Ginny said, laughing again.

"I was thinking slayed a dragon, but yours is much more enjoyable," Harry said, laughing with her.

"Because you'd be insane to prank Snape," Ginny added. "Even my brothers haven't pranked Snape."

Harry nodded, wondering why she was so different from yesterday.

"So, why weren't you at classes yesterday?" Ginny asked sharply.

"I didn't feel well," Harry said, which wasn't exactly a lie.

"Is that what you told everyone else too?" Ginny said, still suspicious.

"Yes, because it's true," Harry said, shrugging, and not quite meeting her eyes.

"But why weren't you at the hospital wing, then?" Ginny said quietly.

Harry met her eyes squarely; startled to see she looked worried. "I didn't want to make a big deal out of it," Harry said softly, looking down again.

Ginny grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, before pulling away and getting to her feet.

"Come on," she said, smiling slightly. "We don't want to be late for class."

And Harry got up to follow her, knowing it was just another day where he couldn't show his powers. He was about to take a step, when a voice stopped him.

"Mr. Potter?"

Harry turned to the Headmaster.

"Yes, sir?" he asked politely.

"Will you follow me to my office now?" he asked kindly, flashing him a look with those twinkling blue eyes.

"Of course, sir," Harry said.

He glanced at Ginny, whose eyes were narrowed slightly, before turning back to stare at Dumbledore, feeling extremely anxious and angry.

He followed the man who was responsible for his parents' death silently, until they reached his office. After gaining entrance from "licorice wands", and going up the revolving staircase, Harry was sitting down, staring at the man behind the desk.

"Harry," Dumbledore started. "I was beginning to grow anxious when you didn't show up to any of your classes."

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry said quickly. "I'm afraid I didn't feel well and I was sleeping in my dormitory."

"You didn't feel well, my boy?" Dumbledore asked in concern. "Why didn't you report to the Hospital Wing?"

"Well, surely you know, Professor, that I detest the Hospital Wing."

Dumbledore nodded. "But you should have gone anyways, Harry," he chided gently. "You could have needed treatment."

"Well, I feel better now, sir," Harry said in his defense, shrugging.

"Very well, Harry," Dumbledore said. "But promise me you will go to the Hospital Wing or at least tell a teacher next time this happens."

"Yes, sir," Harry agreed, waiting. He could tell there was more to this meeting then just to check on his health.

"Harry," Dumbledore said. "I'm afraid I've been keeping something from you."

It took almost all of Harry's will to not curse him and to look surprised.

"Sir?" he questioned.

"You are a very powerful wizard, my dear boy," he continued, his eyes still twinkling madly. "The Dark Lord blocked some of your powers when you vanquished him, and I'm sorry to see I haven't told you. I didn't want to say anything until I figured out a way to unblock it, and it seems the past few days when you were sick, your magic did it for you."

Harry was truly shocked. He couldn't believe Dumbledore was making up an excuse for this! It was unbelievable!

"So, my dear boy, I think it would be best for me to give you lessons to control your powers."

Harry nodded stiffly, not knowing what other choice he had.

"I know you must be angry at me, Harry," Dumbledore added, looking concerned. "But I was just trying to help you."

"I understand, sir," Harry said with as much respect as he could muster.

"Good, good," Dumbledore said, with a wide smile. "I'll inform you on when our first practice will be."

Harry nodded, getting to his feet. He took a few steps to the door, before turning around with a thought coming to him.

"Sir, have you heard any news about Lupin or Snape?

Dumbledore looked at Harry gravely. "I'm afraid, Harry, that they are both with their master. But don't let it worry you, Harry."

Harry nodded glumly, his eyes on the ground.

"It's just thinking that Professor Lupin...."

Dumbledore got to his feet and walked to Harry until he put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know, Harry," he said gently. "But you must not give up. You have wonderful friends in Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger. And you can always come to me for anything."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said, smiling slightly at his Headmaster.

"Of course, Harry," Dumbledore said, smiling widely. "Now run along. Professor Flitwick knows you will be a little late, so don't fret."

"Good day, Professor," Harry said, nodding at him, before leaving the office.

The moment he left the careful eyes of Albus Dumbledore, he felt his magic burst a little and his smile drop. Taking a deep breath, he calmed down, but his eyes still sparked. If anyone had looked closely at that moment, they would have realized how dark his eyes were, until he calmed down and they went back to their normal brilliance.

Harry continued to walk to the Charms class, thinking over the cleverness of Dumbledore.

It would have worked, Harry realized in horror, If it wasn't for Snape and occlumecy.

Harry never had thought he would admit this, but he owed his life to Severus Snape.

* * *

It was just after ten when Harry left to meet Draco Malfoy, under his invisibility cloak. He walked slowly, trying to come up with what to say to the blond aristocrat.

When he reached the astronomy tower, he took off his cloak and waited. Only about a minute had passed, before he saw Draco. He looked very calm, with the trademark sneer and glare when confronting Harry.

"What do you want, Potter?" he asked when they were only about two yards apart.

"Hello, Draco," Harry greeted him, looking from him to the view of the stars.

"Draco?" The blonde questioned coldly.

"Draco, I know you don't follow the Dark Lord," Harry said, getting straight to the point, turning to face him. "I know you know the truth and you know Tom Riddle."

Draco froze, the sneer and glare dropping. "They finally told you, then?" he asked quietly, walking to stand beside him on the balcony.

"Yes," Harry said quietly, turning to smile slightly at Draco.

"So, that's what happened at Transfiguration, and then in the Great Hall the day after," Draco muttered, looking sideways at Harry.

"Yes," Harry sighed. "I'm afraid I'm having trouble controlling my powers."

Draco nodded. "It's okay, Potter," he said. "You'll get it eventually."

"Harry," Harry corrected him.

"Harry?" Draco repeated, his eyes narrowed as he turned to look at Potter fully, who also turned.

"Draco, I never hated you," Harry said quietly, meeting him squarely. "But, I had to keep up a facade just like you did."

"How could you not hate me?" Draco asked, shaking his head.

"I realized I never did," Harry said, shrugging. "I saw us as rivals, which challenged me. But I never hated you."

Draco nodded, looking sheepish. "I'm sorry I was such a git," he apologized. "But I couldn't be nice to you without raising suspicion."

"I understand," Harry said. "And will you forgive me?"

Draco nodded.

"And call me Harry?"

"I guess, Potter," he said, then immediately corrected, "I mean Harry."

Harry smiled at him, and was surprised to see him smile back.

"Is that where you have been lately?" Draco asked.

"Yes, I've been with Tom and my parents," Harry said happily.

"I'm sure you're stunned about your parents being alive," Draco said.

Harry laughed. "Well, actually, this whole thing is pretty crazy. I mean me and you are talking civilly to each other!"

Draco also laughed. "Well, Harry, I think we could have been great friends, contrary to your beliefs," he said arrogantly.

"Yeah, if only I had chosen Slytherin," Harry said sarcastically.

Draco raised his eyebrows. "So, you could have been in Slytherin?"

"I had to beg for the hat to put me in Gryffindor," Harry admitted sheepishly.

Draco snorted. "_Unbelievable_."

Harry smirked at him. "Yeah, imagine the two of us in Slytherin together."

"We would have caused havoc," Draco agreed, also smirking.

"Too bad we can't be friends anywhere besides in secret," Harry sighed, looking down.

Draco turned back to the view. "Until this war is over, at least. You could always come over to my house this summer, Harry."

Harry looked up in shock, and stared at Draco's back. "What?"

Draco nodded. "My parents could make a clone of you that goes to the Dursleys, and you could be at my house."

"I think that's what Tom was planning," Harry said softly. "He said I would never have to return to the Dursleys again, but Dumbledore would make me. I'm sure he would have guards and everything."

"Yes, but you can't spend too much time with them during the summer," Draco said. "You're bound to get bored. Time takes forever in that place!"

"You've been there, then?" Harry asked curiously.

Draco nodded, turning around to smile. "We go there about once every couple of days during the summer or breaks. They are considered family."

Harry smiled and punched Draco jokingly on the arm. "That would make us cousins," he said.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Great," he said sarcastically.

Harry laughed, and they sat there in silence, staring at the stars.

"Why were you late today to charms?" Draco asked, a few minutes later.

"Dumbledore," Harry growled, his eyes narrowed. "He told me Voldemort blocked my powers and the block finally fell. So, he wanted to train me."

Harry felt a surge of power from the blonde, and placed a hand on his arm. "Calm yourself," Harry said quietly.

Draco nodded, still looking furious, until his mask came on again. He took a few deep breaths.

"Sorry," he said quietly.

"Don't worry about it," Harry replied easily. "I'm even madder then you are."

"It's just," Draco explained harshly, "I'm so tired of seeing Dumbledore ruin your life!"

"Me too," Harry sighed, biting his lip. "But I still have to let it happen for a while."

"Why don't you just run away?" Draco asked. "Or stay in Gryffindor's Domain?"

Harry paused. "I don't know," he admitted. "I think the plan is to surprise them or something."

Draco looked at Harry curiously. "But is it really worth it?"

Harry shook his head, not knowing what to say.

"I'm going to go, Draco," Harry said, picking up his invisibility cloak. "Thanks for listening to me, and even coming at all."

"Of course, Harry," Draco said, smirking.

"Draco, have you ever heard of the room of requirements?" Harry asked abruptly.

Draco paused, before nodding slightly.

"Meet me there tomorrow," Harry said. "Same time as today."

"Okay," Draco said. "So, is this the life in the Golden Trio? Sneaking out every night?"

Harry laughed. "It's not as fun as it sounds," he said, before slipping the cloak on.

"Yeah, because it sounds like loads of fun," Draco said sarcastically. "Taking on basilisks, and dementors, and werewolves, and Merlin knows whatever else!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Bye, Drake!"

He turned, with a laugh, at Draco's murderous face.

"If you weren't invisible, Potter!" he threatened.

Harry just smirked and chuckled, before walking away from his new friend.

Maybe things weren't so bad after all. Maybe the Slytherins would make his life better, not worse, for once.

Maybe, just maybe things would be okay.

* * *

**Like it? Please review! **

**Oh, and your opinion on this-**

**should Draco Malfoy be with**

**-Daphne Greengrass**

**-OC**

**-Hermione Granger**

**-Susan Bones**

**-Or someone else?**

**Thanks for reading!**


	8. States of Shock

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated in forever! I am not abandoning this story I've just been really busy with all my sports and such. My computer also crashed so I lost everything and so that also prolonged the wait and gave me a serious case of writer's block from the disappointment of losing my computer. Again, I'm sorry, and this chapter isn't near as good as it was before, but I hope you still like it. **

**

* * *

**

Harry was definitely not in a good mood. He glowered at his plate, flashing looks at a certain red-head who seemed to enjoy making his life complicated. He watched in disgust as she laughed at something Dean Thomas had said, leaning into his side.

"Harry?" Hermione scolded. "Are you even listening to me?"

Harry scowled at her. "No," he said, turning back to glare at Dean intently.

"Harry James Potter!" she began, but then paused. "Oh!" she said in realization, flashing Harry a look of pity.

Harry glared at her.

Why did Hermione Granger have to be so observant? Why was he stuck with the girl who was such a know-it-all and was suspicious of everything? Why in the world did fate hate him so much and have him meet Hermione Granger? How could someone be such an annoyance?

"Yeah, I'm leaving now," Harry muttered darkly, getting to his feet.

"Don't do anything stupid," Hermione said sternly, her eyes narrowed.

Harry snorted. "I'll try," he said sarcastically.

Really, it was too late for that advice. He already had a plan.

* * *

Harry smiled at the reflection of Dean Thomas in the mirror and waved smugly. The image waved back, and Harry smirked. He turned away from the mirror and stared at his body. Man, he was getting good at this Metamorphmagus thing. He looked like an exact copy of Dean.

Harry strutted forward confidently; ready to make Ginny Weasley wish she had never met Dean Thomas.

He left the common room quietly, slipping past a few younger students, and pulled on his invisibility cloak. He took out his wand quickly.

"_Point me _Ginerva Weasle_y,"_ he said, waving his wand. His wand willed him in a direction and he turned to the right. He followed his wand for about ten minutes, going down a few staircases, until he heard a voice in an empty classroom.

"Finally. I told you to be here ten minutes ago."

Harry recognized Ginny's voice and listened curiously.

"I'm sorry," the other person apologized immediately. "I had to get away from-"

"I don't care for your excuses," Ginny cut in impatiently. "I want some explanations."

"Yes, my lady," the girl answered softly.

The voice was familiar. Harry tried to recall whose it was, but his mind was blank.

"Where has Potter been?" Ginny asked harshly.

Harry started in surprise and walked closer to the door. He carefully edged to the end, peering inside and saw Ginny, who was looking furious. Across from her, to Harry's shock, was a kneeling Hermione. Harry walked inside carefully, and it was just in time, because Ginny suddenly waved her wand and Harry recognized the spells as protection spells.

Hermione looked up to meet her eyes. "I'm not sure, my lady. He has been going to the room of requirement a lot, I believe."

Ginny looked furious. She turned away from Hermione and Harry was astonished to see a vase in the room explode. Ginny took a deep breath, and turned back to a started Hermione, and the vase reformed without a single glance from Ginny. Harry had never seen such skillful wandless and nonverbal magic.

Ginny took a few threatening steps towards Hermione, and leaning in to put her face close to hers. "I will not accept disappointment," Ginny hissed dangerously. "You know quite well the consequences."

Hermione bowed her head. "Please," she whispered. "Please don't hurt them."

Ginny smiled cruelly. "I might have to if you don't show some serious improvement, Hermione dear." She took a few steps back disdainfully. "After all it would be quite a shame to have to kill off such talented parents you have, and even your siblings. They are so young…. Maybe I should contact my father now...."

Hermione shook slightly, fighting back tears."Please don't!" she pleaded. "Don't tell the Dark Lord! I promise I won't disappoint you," she added shakily.

"I thought so," Ginny said, smiling in irony. "You're dismissed."

Hermione got to her feet and left in a hurry, leaving Harry to stare with wide eyes at Ginny Weasley.

_Ginny Weasley _was the Dark Lord's daughter._ Ginny Weasley_ is blackmailing Hermione into spying on him, which is why Hermione was so sincere but also so forced._ Ginny_, the girl he had come to really care about, was working to kill him!

Harry watched her angrily, knowing she had been lying to him. It had all been an act. But then, before his eyes, Ginny _Riddle_ fell to her knees and broke into sobs. Harry observed in confusion as she cried, hiding her face in her hands. After a few minutes, she got to her feet abruptly, whipping away the tears. She ran from the room, her face once again a hard mask.

Harry slipped his invisibility cloak off, and tried to process what had just happened. He touched his pendant quickly, whispering, "Gryffindor's Domain."

With a jerk, Harry was whisked away, still in a state of shock.

* * *

Dumbledore was still in a state of shock. He was staring at a younger man with ebony hair, piercing dark green eyes, and with an obvious air of power in his aura, posture, and build. He held himself with a dignified grace, and wore an expensive robe of black with silver lining.

"Evander? Evander Grindelwald?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

"Hello, Professor," Evander said, smiling grimly. "It's been a while."

"Indeed it has," Dumbledore answered, his eyes narrowed slightly. "And what brings you here, Mr. Grindelwald?"

Evander raised an eyebrow. "I have been informed that you have an open position as a professor here."

Dumbledore narrowed his eyes more. "I'm afraid the position has been filled, my boy."

Evander also narrowed his eyes. "I am not your boy, Headmaster. Or have you forgotten?"

Dumbledore smiled stiffly. "Or course not, Mr. Grindelwald," he said softly.

"Well then," Evander said, with a subtle edge of anger, "I would like to fill the empty position, _sir_."

Dumbledore shook his head. "We already have a new professor for the potions position." Dumbledore smiled, glad he had an excuse to decline the young, powerful man from his desire.

"I never said I wanted the potions position," Evander said slowly, his eyebrows raised.

Dumbledore froze, before laughing. "I doubt you have the right background,_ Grindelwald_. After all, I don't even think I can trust you to be a professor here." He smiled coldly. "You would be better suited to teach Dark Arts."

"You cannot trust me, Dumbledore?" Evander glared at him, breaking his blank mask. "It's not like I killed _your_ father!" he hissed.

Dumbledore smiled sadly, but inwardly was smirking. "No, you did not, Evander. But you were quite the rebellious teen. You showed me everyday how much you blamed me for your childhood."

Evander lessened his glare, but was still very tense. "And still do, sir," he said quietly. "But you cannot deny me this position. I had excellent grades and currently have a clean record."

Dumbledore smiled gravely. "Very well, Mr. Grindelwald," he consented after a few moments of silence. "You have the position. I expect to see you tomorrow morning."

Evander Grindelwald got to his feet quickly, nodded curtly, and left the room in a flourish.

Dumbledore smirked, laughing silently to himself.

Becoming a professor will be the worst and last decision Evander Grindelwald will make. Albus Dumbledore would make sure of that.

With narrowed eyes, Dumbledore began a letter to his fellow Lord. Voldemort had a few prisoners that Albus was interested in…..

Dumbledore smiled to himself maliciously. He had a few things planned for Evander to show him just what happens when you rebel against Albus Dumbledore. The day Evander betrayed him was the day he signed his name on a Death list, right next to his father's name that was still unattended to.

* * *

**Well what do you think? Again, I'm so sorry for the wait! Please review! **


	9. Fickle Fate

**Hello all! Here's a new chapter. I'm rotating between updating this one and EoM. Sorry for the wait, as always. Life, you know. :) **

**Pairings-**

**Draco-**

**-OC**

**-Hermione**

**-other**

**I have some other pairings in mind. Potions class with certainly be interesting after a while... ;) you'll see...**

**Anyways enjoy. **

* * *

Harry couldn't help but stare at Ginny Riddle. And he couldn't stop imagining cursing her into oblivion for lying so drastically to him. And he couldn't end his admiration of her powers and her spying ability. And he couldn't ignore his desire to wrap her in his arms and kiss her senseless. And he forced off the urge to scream at her for leading him on. Not to mention he wanted to beg that she turned to his side. And more than anything he wanted to tell her he knew, and hear exactly what she thinks of it.

However, his parents and the current Leader of the Light were very opposed to all those ideas. Well, maybe besides the staring part. They wanted him to spy on Ginny, to be exact, and are extremely certain that he will have an advantage with his new found abilities, his invisibility cloak, his map, and knowing what Ginny did not.

Harry, however, wasn't so optimistic. He knew that fiery redhead better than anyone, even if she wasn't really a Weasley. He still knew her temper and powers could not be underestimated.

"Harry, you're staring at her again," Hermione whispered in his ear.

Harry turned to Hermione, sighing. Hermione Granger. Another mystery. It's not every day you find out your best friend is being blackmailed to spy on you by the person you have a major crush on, who just happens to be the daughter of the man who wants to kill you more than anything.

"I know," he said grimly, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

Hermione flashed a quick glance over there and noticed Ginny was preoccupied by other students her age. "Give Ginny up, Harry," she said in an undertone. Her eyes were wide, and she had a serious expression on. "She's dangerous Harry, please. There are so many other girls."

Harry glanced at Ginny, his eyes narrowed, then back to Hermione.

Hermione was trying to help him, he realized. She was risking her life to make him understand the dangers. But why didn't she just tell him?

"I know," Harry answered solemnly. "I know."

She gave him a confused look. "But why-"

"Hermione, will you pass me the butter?" Ron interrupted, an annoyed expression on his face obviously from being ignored.

Hermione quickly handed him the butter and started talking to him about classes. I turned away from Hermione, thinking hard about her.

How much did Hermione know? And what exactly is she trying to protect by spying on him?

Harry finished his meal in silence, alternating from staring at Ginny and Hermione.

Things were definitely going to get interesting.

Harry was brought from his thoughts when he noticed Dumbledore get up from his chair.

"Good morning students!" Dumbledore greeted them. "We have two new teachers to take place for our two empty positions."

Harry turned to look at the high table, and did realize there were two new wizards there. One had sharp features, dark hair and very intelligent green eyes. The second had shoulder-length blonde hair, very dignified features and manners, and intense gray eyes.

"Please welcome our new Potions professor Leander Malfoy and our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Evander Grindelwald!"

The hall was dead silent as first the blonde wizard rose and then the dark-haired man rose. Harry was frozen in shock as he heard first a Malfoy he had never known of called, and then the name Grindelwald. He couldn't decide was more surprising: another Malfoy or another Grindelwald. And the question: why hadn't he heard of either of them before?

And then the hall exploded with noise as people talked to each other about it, and Harry couldn't help but continue to stare at the two new professors. Professor Dumbledore smiled in amusement at the reaction of the students, and Harry once again wanted to kill the man.

Once again, Dumbledore had to know everything while he was left in the dark. Curse his bloody life!

Harry looked down at his schedule and noticed he had a double period with both of them today. He sighed. His life got more confusing as the minute passed.

He got to his feet, noticing that potions started in about thirty minutes, and starting heading there, wondering what fate had in store for him today.

* * *

Harry sat quietly in the potions classroom, waiting for his fellow classmates to come in, and silently, but desperately, trying to read as much as he could from his potions textbook. Harry wouldn't be surprised if this Professor Malfoy pulled a Snape on him by drilling him with questions far above his level. And this only to embarrass him, or maybe to prove the point that clearly fame isn't everything.

The next person to enter was not a student, but Professor Leander Malfoy himself. He looked startled to see another student already in the classroom.

"Mr. Potter," he said, an eyebrow raised. "And to what do I owe this early pleasure?"

Harry wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic or not. He sighed, knowing this professor would surely be no easier to figure out than Snape.

"Hello, sir," Harry said, meeting his sharp, grey eyes politely. He noticed that they were much like Draco's and realized it must run in the family. "I finished breakfast early so thought I'd come down here and do some reading." He lifted his book slightly in the air, before returning it to the table.

"I thought that was meant for the library, Mr. Potter," Professor Malfoy stated, his eyes narrowed.

"I lose track of time easily, sir," Harry explained sheepishly, shrugging. "I wouldn't want to be late to your class, would I?"

He seemed amused, and he smiled slightly. "No, of course not, Mr. Potter," he said. He gave me a short nod. "Carry on."

Harry nodded and turned back to his book. He watched Leander Malfoy in the corner of his eye and saw him sit down at his desk, looking through papers. Harry focused on his book, taking in as much information as he could.

After a few minutes, Hermione walked in seemingly surprised that Harry was already there. The Slytherins seemed to stalk in after a minute of two, and about a minute or so before the start of class the Gryffindors slouched in. Ron and Hermione had claimed the seats on either side of Harry, confused on why he was reading. He shrugged when they asked.

When the bell finally rung, Harry put his book away reluctantly. He was _so_ dead.

Professor Malfoy walked to the front of the class gracefully, with the perfect Malfoy posture and elegance.

"Good morning, class," he said smoothly. "I am Professor Malfoy. As my fifth year class, I expect all of you to work very hard. As you know, O.W.L.S. is coming up and it is very important to do well in them. That is how your magic skills are evaluated. So, to get the best results from this class, I have decided to split you into partners I believe will best fit you."

The class shared apprehensive expressions, and warily looked around, hoping not to be with a few people.

Professor Malfoy grabbed a parchment from his desk and began to list the partners off.

"OK, Thomas with Goyle, Longbottom with Greengrass, Patil with Parkinson, Bulstrode with Finnigan, Weasley with Zabini, Granger with Nott, Crabbe with Brown, and Malfoy with Potter." He smirked at our disgusted faces. "Any questions? Excellent!"

Harry moved over to sit by Draco, trying to look angry. "Of everyone, it had to be Malfoy," he spat out loudly, but winking at him when nobody was looking. Draco smiled slightly back.

"OK, now that we are with our partners," Malfoy said, which made everyone, especially Lavander, throw him dirty looks, "Let's start on a basic blood-replenish potion."

Everyone opened their books to the right page, and Harry memorized the ingredients. It was a rather simple potion, but with a Gryffindor-Slytherin class, things were bound to go wrong.

"I'll get the ingredients, Malfoy," Harry spat out, glaring at Draco half-heartedly. He was met by an equal stare.

"Fine, Potter, try to not mess anything up!"

Harry stalked over to the ingredients, carefully grabbing the necessary items, before returning to the table. They started the potion, occasionally flinging insults loudly at each other. The potion soon was complete and was the correct shade of light blue. Harry silently grabbed a spare piece of parchment and a quill, and began to write.

_Sorry about today. I detest acting like I hate you._

Harry casually passed the parchment to him, after seeing everyone was still occupied by their potion. Draco read and answered it quickly, before sliding it back to him. Harry read it quickly.

_Me too. Room of requirement tonight? You seemed preoccupied this morning…. like you have something to tell me._

Harry sighed, realizing Draco didn't know about Ginny yet. He wrote back swiftly, glancing around him before passing it on.

Draco read the words curiously.

_Yes, I do. And you have something to tell me. Like the current potions professor perhaps?_

Draco flashed a look at the said professor, and quickly scratched a reply. He passed the note back to the expectant hands.

_That's my uncle. My dad's younger brother. He isn't as socially involved as my dad, so that's why you haven't heard of him. He travels all over the world and is like an international auror. I don't know much about it, because it's pretty secret. But he was good friends with Professor Snape, they were in the same year. He never got the dark mark, simply because he wouldn't be able to do his job with a dark mark as the Dark Lord well knows. But he is expected to fight on the Dark Lord's side when the time comes, which he won't. He knows both sides of the war are corrupt and he has met Tom. I'm glad he's here, because he could really help us._

Harry read this, nodding. He was about to write back, when the note was suddenly grabbed. Harry looked up to see Professor Malfoy reading the note silently, and some students were watching the event in confusion.

"More threats and insults, Potter and Draco," he said with a sigh. "I would expect more from the two of you. Detention tonight at 7."

Harry and Draco glared at each other, but silently were pleased. Here was a chance to talk to an adult who was actually on their side and knew they were friends.

The bell rang then, and Professor Malfoy dismissed the class.

"Malfoy, Potter, stay," he ordered.

Harry waved away his bodyguards while Draco waved away his friends, and turned to face the professor.

"We have much to talk about tonight," he said seriously, looking down at the note. "And you must be much more careful together, who knows what teacher will take a note like this." His eyebrow line creased in worry for a moment, before clearing. He waved the two boys off. "Have fun in Professor Grindelwald's class."

At their apprehensive expressions, he smirked.

"And good luck. Trust me, you'll need it."

Harry met eyes with Draco as they turned away, both sharing their own doubts. When they left the classroom they relaxed their stiff posture a bit.

"Who in Merlin's name is this Grindelwald guy?" Harry finally asked. "Do you think he's related to…..?"

"Yes, definitely," Draco answered quietly. "He looks a lot like the pictures of Grindelwald. I would say our new professor is perhaps the son of the Dark Lord Grindelwald himself."

Harry looked started. "But how is he allowed to teach here? I would think he wouldn't be trusted with this sort of thing."

Draco met my gaze from the corner of his eye as we were walking. "That, Harry, is a very good question. And I hope we aren't late and find out just how much they have in common."

With that, Harry widened his eyes in alarm and started sprinting there, Draco silently laughing. Harry stopped when he realized Draco wasn't with him. He turned around and walked back to him slowly.

"We have a break in between, don't we?" he said humorlessly.

Draco smirked. "Very good, my friend. You catch on quickly."

"Do I?" Harry smirked back. "Well I hope the same is true for you."

"What do you mean?" Draco asked warily, but then he widened his eyes and started to slowly back away.

"Run while you can, Malfoy!" Harry yelled, and started throwing spells at him relentlessly.

Draco managed to dodge or block most of the spells, but he was hit by a few. And now there stood an angry Malfoy, with flaming red hair, a lion's tale, and gold skin. He glared at Harry, but it only made the Gryffindor laugh harder.

"Wow Draco," he managed to say, "You sure are school spirited!"

Draco snarled and took out his wand, and Harry winced. Now it was his turn to run.

Harry sprinted away as fast as he could, keeping a shield up, and blocked every spell, curse, and hex sent his way. And he proudly would tell anyone in talking distance of him that he converted Malfoy to the good side and got away with it.

That was when he came across Ginny Riddle. He touched her arm, laughing, until she met his eyes. The pure fear in her eyes was enough to freeze Harry completely.

"Harry," she whispered. "We need to talk."

Harry nodded numbly, his heart beating quickly. He tried to calm his racing heart, but it was futile. She grabbed his hand quickly, and dragged him out of the hallway into an empty classroom.

Harry met her eyes quickly, still startled. What was so terrifying that had the bravest girl he knew petrified?

She looked away, unable to hold his gaze. "Harry, I-"

But then the warning bell rang, alerting them that they only had five minutes to get to class. Ginny turned and ran away before Harry could ask what she was about to say. Harry watched the red-headed figure leave the classroom and then turn down the hallway.

Harry wished he knew what Ginny was going to tell him. It surely was much more important than class.

Harry checked his wand, realizing he had now four minutes to get to class. He cursed mentally and started booking it to his Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

Apparently, he was just destined to have horrible luck. Of all the classes to be late to, the supposed ex-Dark Lord's son's class would be his last pick.

But, like Harry knew, fate hated him.

* * *

**Hey! Please review!**

**I know there's a lot going on, so any questions just ask. :) **

**-HH**


	10. Grindelwald and Granger

**Hey faithful readers! Thanks for the patience! Here's your chapter, enjoy. ;) I have lots in store for you, many many surprises in this story. Just keep reading, I promise:) **

* * *

Harry rushed to the DADA classroom, praying that somehow he wouldn't be late. The corridors were empty, everyone already in class, which made Harry feel even worse.

Such a great first impression: the golden Harry Potter didn't need to be on time, did he, because he's so _great_.

Harry winced as the bell rang, and Harry sprinted down the last corridor to the room. He tried to sneak in as quietly as possible, but Professor Grindelwald was already in the front. Harry flinched, waiting for him to shoot insults at him and yell at him for being so insubordinate.

But... _Nothing_. Harry took a chair besides a Ravenclaw, Tracey Davis, a girl he didn't know very well, his eyes still locked on Grindelwald. Draco Malfoy stared at him from across the room, wondering why in the world he was late. This was the possible son of the bloody Dark Lord Grindelwald, and Harry shows up _late_.

"Welcome class," Grindelwald finally said, smiling slightly at them. He fingered his long wand, which was a light brown color, and seemed to be assessing them. "I am Professor Grindelwald, and I would ask you to address me as such when we are in the presence of another professor or administrator. In the privacy of the classroom or elsewhere, you may call me by my given name: Evander." He smirked at their surprised faces. "I feel like an old man when you are all calling me sir and Professor Grindelwald."

He paused, moving from his spot in the center of the class over to his desk, no longer facing the students as he placed his hands on the desk.

"As most of you must be wondering, I am indeed related to Gellert Grindelwald." He seemed to tense while the class started at him in silence, some frozen in fear. "He may be connected to me in blood, but he has never had much influence on me." He turned to the class again, his face cheerful again. "Well, any questions?"

And after a few seconds passed, it was like a mob of hands. He sighed, resigned. He glanced at Harry, who was the only one with their hand down. He raised his eyebrow for a second, but then just concentrated on the other students.

"Never mind that, you'll all figure it out in due time," he said, motioning for them all to put our hands down. He glanced around the class until he met Harry's eyes again, and smiled slyly.

"Mr. Potter, would you be so kind and be my assistant?" Grindelwald asked, and Harry glared at him and his mischievous expression.

Harry sighed, got to his feet, and trudged to the front, glowering slightly. He can't have _one_ attention-free period, could he?

"Now, Harry-" he paused, smiling slightly and added, "May I call you Harry?"

The young wizard forced a smile. "Of course,_ Evander_," he said politely, but there was a hint of mockery in his voice that Grindelwald smirked at.

"Good, good," Grindelwald said, before moving to grab something from his sleeve. Harry reacted instantly, bringing his wand out, his eyes not leaving the hand that reached for something. Grindelwald smirked, taking out a piece of parchment.

"Jumpy, are we Mr. Potter?" he asked smoothly.

Harry lowered his wand, shrugging. "It's either that or death, sir," Harry stated candidly, unembarrassed.

"Evander," the professor reminded him, seemingly amused.

"My name is Harry, sir. I think you're confused, sir," Harry said quietly, trying not to laugh, and Grindelwald snorted.

"So this is the famous Boy-Who-Lived?" Grindelwald asked softly, meeting his eyes.

Harry smiled as he blocked the attempt to break into his mind, occluding Grindelwald expertly. "Oh no, sir," Harry said softly, "this is not the Boy-Who-Lived."

Grindelwald had an unreadable expression, before smirking and handing him the parchment. "Read it, Harry," he ordered loudly so the whole class could hear them.

Harry read the spell written on it silently, before speaking it out loud: "Viva Li_men_ta Cersi_o_."

"It's a bone-shattering spell," Grindelwald explained to the class. "It's important for you to learn how to fight when you are in the middle of a war. And when someone is trying to kill you, you can't just shoot weak stunners and mild charms at them." He looked seriously at the class, before glancing at Harry. "You have to fight back with something that can actually cause some damage, even if it is known as a somewhat dark spell. You have to fight fire with fire."

Hermione Granger than raised her hand, and Harry rolled his eyes to himself.

"Yes, Ms. Granger," he said, amused, but Harry also noticed he looked a little irritated.

"I-" she started, but then met Grindelwald's eyes and stopped. "Never mind, I forgot."

And the class stared at Hermione Granger in utter, complete, irrevocable shock.

Hermione Granger did not forget.

Hermione Granger did not allow anyone to intimidate her.

Hermione Granger always finishes everything.

Hermione Granger was supposed to be the know-it-all book-worm who is so confident and sure of herself.

But was there a hint of….. doubt in her eyes?

Harry silently marveled with the rest of the class, wondering what was wrong with Hermione Granger, but had a little more insight than them.

Was she perhaps acting as well? Is she starting to get tired of being so infuriatingly smart and annoying? Is she also tired of living a lie? But what did she have to hide?

Harry watched Hermione closely, before he heard his name called again. He turned to Professor Grindelwald, curious on what was to happen next.

"Now, Mr. Potter, you can attempt the spell on this block of wood," Grindelwald said, motioning to the wood that sat on the floor close by him.

Harry bit his lip, wondering if he should show a bit of his powers or not. He quickly decided he would try it twice, and then get it. After all, he was supposed to be pretty good at DADA. Harry pointed his wand at the block.

"Viva Limenta Cersio," he said, purposely not adding in the needed emphasis for the spell to work.

Like expected, nothing happened.

Grindelwald raised his eyebrows at Harry, clearly not fooled by his deception. "It's ok, Harry," he said, "It's a hard spell. Try again."

Harry went again, deliberately messing it up, and again there was no result. Ignoring Grindelwald's suspicious glances, Harry focused. He reminded himself not to overdo it and to speak clearly. Raising his wand again, he said, "Viva Li_men_ta Cersi_o_."

The results were instant. The block shattered to hundreds of little chips after being hit by the red spell. Everyone gasped, staring at the now destroyed block of wood.

"Very good, Harry," Grindelwald said, his eyes still narrowed faintly, but he smiled lightly anyways. "Fifteen points to Gryffindor," he added, before nodding at me. "You may go back to your seat."

Harry walked back and sat down, meeting Tracey Davis' eyes. She looked at him, with a knowing glint in her eye. Harry turned away to stare at the professor, slightly unnerved.

What was that perceptive look for? Did she know something?

Harry tried to concentrate on the lecture, but found the words fading away to nothing. He glanced at Hermione, who had an unreadable look on her face. He then wondered about Ginny, and what she possibly was thinking about.

He stared at his desk with one thought in mind: Why in the world are girls so cryptic?

* * *

Hermione Granger listened to Evander Grindelwald's lecture on what else they would be learning that year, her heart beating in terror every time he met her eyes and every time he moved closer to where she was sitting. If he were to ever get the slightest clue-

Don't think about it, she chanted to herself. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.

But she couldn't stop. If Evander ever realized who she was, than it would all be over. Everything she had ever worked for, every sacrifice. Gone.

"Ms. Granger," Grindelwald suddenly said, and it brought Hermione out of her reverie. She looked over at him, but was unable to meet his gaze.

"Yes sir?" she asked quietly.

"Maybe you can tell the class who discovered the patronus," he suggested, expectant.

She caved and sneaked a glance at him. Her eyes instantly locked with his. Looking into those green eyes again….. Was so overwhelming, so gratifying, but also so very painful. She stared at him silently, until Ron nudged her, and she realized he was waiting for a reply.

"No," she managed to choke out.

He gave her a puzzling look, as if he was trying to discern something. He shook his head, before turning to the class, who were all gaping at Hermione Granger.

"Albaney Flilich came up with the theory of the patronus and it is very important that everyone knows how to produce a patronus so dementors will have no affect on you," Grindelwald continued. 'We will include this in our studies this year."

The bell rang and Hermione looked up, not meeting anyone's eyes. And all she would have seen were identical expressions of astonishment. Hermione quickly gathered her things, and hurried out of the room, leaving everyone wondering what in the world was wrong with Hermione Granger.

* * *

Evander Grindelwald smiled tiredly at the other few professors as he entered the staff lounge, taking a seat next to Minerva McGonagall. He had always respected her, because she did not discriminate and seemed sympathetic to his problems. She always told him that if he needed anything, he could ask her. She had been a good teacher.

"How was your first day?" Minerva asked him, smiling kindly.

"It went as well as it could," he answered quietly, and she and the other two professors in the room gave him understanding looks.

"Did they cause any problems?" Professor Flitwick asked.

"No, no, they were just a little…." Evander searched for the right word, "unruly."

"Ahh, you met Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy," Minerva said knowingly, looking exasperated. "Those two-"

"Actually, no," Evander denied, which stunned them. He massaged his forehead as he tried to dispel the headache. "They were fairly quiet. I actually just had class with the Weasley Twins. They are_ persistent_."

The other professors snorted at this, as if amused by this. And they all knew nothing more needed to be said on that matter.

"What students catch your eye?" Professor Sprout asked curiously, taking a drink of her tea.

"Well there's a few, including Harry Potter of course," Evander said off-handedly.

The others nodded in understanding, as if they expected that. Evander looked at Minerva and saw she looked thoughtful, as if lost in thought about that said student. She noticed his questioning glance and just shook her head.

"But I am a little disappointed by one of the students," Evander started, still watching Minerva inquisitively. "You said Hermione Granger was a prodigy, didn't you Minerva?"

Minerva looked confused. "Of course," she answered. "The girl is incredibly brilliant."

"Well she wasn't today," Evander said. "She didn't raise her hand to answer any of my questions, wasn't paying attention, and when I did ask her a question, she said she didn't know."

The three professors looked stunned, and they gawked at him.

Evander shrugged, crossing his arms as he waited for someone to speak.

"_What question _did you ask the girl?" Professor Sprout finally asked, sounding accusing.

Evander was a little put-off to see that the professor thought he had asked her something impossible to answer. "I only asked her who came up with the theory of the patronus charm," he said frostily.

Professor Flitwick looked even more incredulous. "She answered that question correctly for me a few days ago," he said, mystified.

The three bewildered professors look intently at him, trying to make sense of this new information and failing. Evander was in no better place than them.

"Well, Ms. Granger seems to be holding back," Evander mused, fingering his wand as he considered this. "What an interesting event. And I plan on finding out why."

Evander wondered about Hermione Granger, not knowing she was thinking about him at the exact same moment. And neither of them realized that a certain boy with a lightning-bolt scar had his thoughts on them as well, along with the powerful wizard who gave him his scar.

* * *

**Ohh the suspense! Hope you liked it! :) review please... any questions just ask.**


	11. Had to be Gryffindor

**Hey! Here's my update! Thanks to all who have reviewed or have added it to story alert and such. It took me a long time to look up some things so everything would be correct, so you better be grateful! Haha just kidding. Anyways, this one has a big cliffhanger. Sorry, I just love suspense:) Carry on and enjoy...**

* * *

"So what's this all about, Harry?" Draco asked, leaning back in the green couch he was on.

Harry leaned back in his own red chair, glancing around the room of requirement as he gathered his thoughts. He sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"Well, I had a vision of Voldemort a few nights ago and he wasn't alone," Harry started, looking back at Draco. "And, well, there was a girl in it. She was-" he broke off, looking dazed. "She had a very powerful aura, very distinct. It, well, it reminded me of Ginny."

"The Weaselette?" Draco said, surprised.

"Yes," Harry sighed, looking away from his friend.

"She_ reminded_ you of Ginny?" Draco repeated, looking confused.

"She didn't look like Ginny, well apart from them both having red hair," Harry explained quietly.

"Then how do you know it was her?" Draco asked, trying to reason with him.

"It will just be easier to show you," Harry said. He thought about having a Pensieve and one appeared in his hand.

"Show me what?" Draco asked curiously.

Harry concentrated on the memory of Ginny and Hermione, pressing his wand to his head, and extracted it. The thin, silvery thread of memory came with the point of his wand as he guided it to the Pensieve. Harry motioned Draco over, and together they fell into his memories.

* * *

Draco gasped as he fell out of the memories, staring with wide eyes at Harry.

"No-bloody-way," he managed to say, and then the words started to pour out, like a dam that burst. "So Granger is being blackmailed? And Weasley is pretending to be a Weasley? She's the Dark Lord _daughter_? Is this some sick joke? Cause this really isn't funny Harry! Is this payback for earlier? I swear-"

"Draco, slow down," Harry interrupted, sighing as he ran a hand through his hair, with a small smile on his face. He couldn't help but be a bit amused by his reaction, but at the same time he understood that it was very overwhelming and was a serious problem.

Draco shot him an annoyed look, but closed his mouth and waited for more explanation.

"I'm not sure what to think of Ginny yet," Harry said, frowning slightly. "The other day it seemed as if she wanted to tell me something, and the way she broke into tears after the meeting with Hermione is very interesting. But at the same time I understand that she is very dangerous and I have to be careful around her."

Draco nodded, showing he agreed with this, and continued to ponder the red-head.

"So we need to watch her, don't we?" Draco said perceptively. He sighed as Harry nodded. "_Great_. My first adventure with Harry bloody Potter. Spy on the Dark Lord's daughter. _Great _plan. Should we just commit suicide now?"

Harry smirked. "Usually my partners are a bit more optimistic."

"Partners?" Draco snorted. "More like followers."

Harry scowled, but then chuckled warily. "I'll give you that one, Malfoy."

Draco smiled slightly, but still looked thoughtful. "How are we going to do it, Harry?" he finally asked.

Harry smiled grimly, personally wondering the same thing. "Well, Draco," he said softly, "I'm a man who never has a plan. Get used to it."

"Stupid Gryffindors," Draco muttered, rolling his eyes. "They're all about impulse and their gut-feeling. Yeah, well their intuition is what gets them killed, because it's a load of self-sacrificing bravery crap!"

Harry couldn't help but break into laughter, and Draco looked at him in surprise.

"Well its true isn't it?" Harry said, trying to calm his laughter. "As Snape would say: _Those__ reckless, impulsive, dunderheads_!"

Draco joined him in laughter at his imitation of Snape's sneer, and they enjoyed the moment care-free.

After about a half an hour of joking around, Harry got to his feet, looking at his watch.

"Well, I better get back," Harry announced, shooting a smirk at Draco. "I have a quidditch game to win tomorrow!"

The Slytherin seeker snorted. "Yeah, in your dreams, Potter! We are going to crush your pathetic excuse of a team!"

Harry laughed. "Pathetic? Is that what you call a team that has a better record than yours?"

Draco scowled at him. "You aren't going to win this year, Potter," he warned him.

This made Harry smile. "Well, somehow I get injured every end of the year because of one of my adventures, so I'm sure you will."

There was a horrified expression on Draco's face as he realized Harry's words. "Both of our teams are going to be without a seeker by the end of this, aren't they?"

The green-eyed wizard chuckled. "Well, you _are_ joining my adventure, aren't you?" he asked, amused.

Draco glared at Harry, muttering to himself about Gryffindors and stupidity.

Harry managed to fight the laugh waiting to emerge, and just waved cheerfully at Draco as he opened the door to leave.

"Yeah, run back to your bodyguards, Potter!" Draco yelled before he left. "You're going to need it for tomorrow's game!"

This time Harry couldn't stop the laugh, and laughed the whole way back to his dorm, actually enjoying himself for once is a long time.

* * *

The morning of the Slytherin-Gryffindor game brought much hostility, anticipation, and excitement. The two rival schools glared at each other during breakfast, mocking the other side loudly to their friends. Harry rolled his eyes, but was nevertheless thrilled for the game. He missed quidditch when it was cancelled last year because of the Triwizard Tournament. Quidditch was one thing that helped him feel perfectly at ease.

"Hey Potter!"

Harry turned to see Draco sauntering over, with a smirk on his face and with Goyle and Crabbe at his sides. Ron and Hermione tensed beside him, but Harry observed the enemy seeker with calmness.

"Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle," Harry said, nodding curtly to each in turn. "And what do we owe this great honor?" he added sarcastically, smirking slightly.

"Just wishing you luck Potter," Malfoy said coolly. "You're going to need it to get through today's match!"

Harry laughed and got to his feet, brushing past them. "Well that's great Malfoy. It's good to know you care. See you at the match!"

Harry was still laughing at their dumbfounded expressions as he left the great hall, and headed for the pitch. When he arrived, he got dressed with the rest of the team. After the pep talk from Angelina, they all exited to the field, ready for the aggressive and competitive match to begin. Harry soared up on his broom with the rest of the team, glancing at the stands. He noticed Hermione cheering enthusiastically, and Ginny was next to her, and met Harry's eyes with a smile on her face. Harry smiled slightly, but felt his stomach in knots. He wished he never found out the truth about her. Ignorance would have been so much nicer; even if it did end up killing him.

Harry waited for Madam Hooch to blow her whistle, and started his search for the Snitch. He caught Draco's eye and they smirked at each other, before breaking off at different directions in search of the small, golden ball.

"So we're off!" Lee Jordan started to yell, acting as the announcer of the game. "Bell grabs hold of the Quaffle and throws it to Johnson-what a player she is, and very attractive-"

"JORDAN!" McGonagall yelled, warning in her voice.

"Anyways, Johnson is flying down the field unopposed, but wait-she dodges a Bludger! Nice twist Angelina! And now she passes it to Spinnet-come on Alicia!"

The Quaffle soared through the ring on the left, causing cheers to erupt from the red side of the stadium, and jeers from the Slytherins. Harry pumped his fist, satisfied that his team would be alright, and started to scan for the snitch.

"Warrington with the Quaffle and he passes it back and forth with the Slytherin captain Montague. Montague dodges the Bludger from one of the Weasley twins-can't tell which one. Montague is in shooting distance! Come on Ron, save it!" Lee urged.

The Slytherins yelled as the Quaffle past inches away from Ron's fingers, soaring to the right ring.

"And the scores ten-ten," Lee announced, somewhat glumly. "But now Alicia with the Quaffle, she heads down field and-"

Lee broke off as Alicia was hit by one of the players of green in the back, causing her to dive to the ground and losing the Quaffle. Boos echoed by the Gryffindor side while Slytherin was giving their approval.

"FOUL!" Lee screamed in indignation, obviously frustrated by the dirty play. "Pucey should be sent off the field!"

Alicia managed to get back on her feet, to the applause and admiration of the audience in red. Madam Hooch also called for a foul, and Alicia scored from her free shot. Gryffindor erupted in ovation, and the game continued.

Harry couldn't spot the snitch, and after a while the score had progressed to the Gryffindors having 70 points while the Slytherins had 80. Many fouls were committed, but no one was seriously injured yet. The Slytherins managed to score again and Harry knew it was time to act. He started to look around, glancing at Draco who was also searching for the Snitch, and pretended to spot the snitch. Harry started a miraculous dive, with his arm outstretched.

"Potter had spotted the snitch!" Lee yelled. "COME ON HARRY!"

Harry pulled up at the last second, knowing Draco was hot on his tail, and the Slytherin almost collided with the ground. Draco managed to pull up, not near as gracefully as Harry, and he glared at Harry. Harry smiled.

"And it seems he was just faking out the Slytherin keeper," Lee said, to the disappointment of Gryffindor.

"What was_ that,_ Potter?" Draco growled.

"Thought you were looking bored, Draco," Harry said cheerfully, before flying off.

No sooner than he did, did Harry spot the golden Snitch. Not believing his luck, Harry blew across the field, pushing his broom to its maximum. Draco, sensing this one was real, followed him quickly. Harry urged his broom up, blocking the glare of the sun with one of his hands, as he reached for the Snitch with the other.

"And Potter almost has the Snitch! Almost there-" Lee yelled.

Before he could grab it, the Snitch dived down. Cursing, Harry turned, with Draco on his right side. The beaters were both trying to knock out each other's seekers, and Harry barrel-rolled to dodge one that missed him by centimeters. Harry dived, pushing back Draco, and seized the snitch in his hand.

"Harry Potter has caught the Snitch! GRYFFINDOR WINS! GRYFFINDOR BEATS SLYTHERIN!"

Cheers erupted across the stadium, but Slytherin was silent as they seethed.

Harry turned to Draco, who sighed.

"I guess my only chance is if you end up injured and I don't, then," Draco said, with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

Harry laughed. "Good game, Draco," he said, before flying down to his teams.

He was enveloped by hugs and-in the case of the Weasley twins-mock tears and declarations of their love. Harry laughed, and they walked to the locker room, considerably happier then when he arrived. After Angelina congratulated the team and dismissed them, they each separated to shower and change.

* * *

Harry was the last to leave the locker room, and he exited quickly, excited for the party in the dorm. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't see Ginny as he ran into her in the front of the locker room.

"Oh, sorry, Ginny," he apologized, smiling at her, somewhat breathless. She looked amazing, like always, with her flowing red hair, beautiful eyes, perfect body, and bright smile. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold, which caused him to smile more. He barely registered that she had been lying to him, and she was the daughter of the man he hated the most.

"Hi Harry," she said, embracing him. Harry held her close, breathing in her wonderful scent.

"Great game," she said, pulling away. Harry reluctantly let her go, but was glad she was still standing close to him.

"Thanks," he said, a bit embarrassed, but now ten-times more pleased he caught the Snitch.

"The seeker was very impressive today," she continued, taking a step closer to him. "Don't you think so?"

Harry laughed slightly, running a hand through his hair.

"I think that seeker is definitely a keeper," she murmured. "Our team would fall apart without him."

"Oh really?" Harry said mischievously. "Tell me more about him, he sounds incredible."

Ginny laughed softly. "Well, he's very handsome," she flirted, winking, "and smart, funny, talented and always brave and kind. "

"Sounds like a great guy," Harry said softly, caught in Ginny's eyes. "I'm sure he would love it if you showed him how much you liked him."

Ginny stepped closer, so their bodies were pressed together. Harry pushed away the warnings in his head about this being dangerous and Ginny being the daughter of Voldemort, and leaned in. Their lips touched, and Harry wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her gently, but it started to become more passionate. He pressed her against the wall of the locker room, and she ran her hands over his chest. His hands started to wander and he kissed her neck. She moaned, and Harry broke off after a minute, breathless. Before he could speak, she captured his lips with hers, and she allowed his tongue entrance. Harry had never felt such bliss in his life, and he found he never wanted to stop. He ran his hands through her silky hair, and the kiss slowed. Harry leaned away, gasping for air, but smiling. He put an arm on either side of her, trapping her there.

"Now Ginerva," he whispered into her ear. "You're my prisoner."

"What are you going to do with me?" she murmured back, and he couldn't stop his reaction.

He leaned in and kissed her again, but slowly. His lips traveled to her neck again, and she was unable to move, not that she wanted to.

"Now, Ginny," Harry murmured against her neck. "Do you mind being my prisoner?"

Ginny pulled away, so he was against the wall. She leaned in to whisper in his ear. "No, let's do it more often."

Harry wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, unable to let go no matter how much she had lied to him. They say there in silence for a minute or so, both thinking. Harry knew he had to spy on her, and that's how he justified his thoughts. He wanted to go out with Ginny, and what better way to spy on Ginny than to be her boyfriend?

"Ginny, will you be my girlfriend?" Harry asked hesitantly, but without a doubt in his mind.

Ginny pulled back, suddenly frozen. He stiffened at her expression, and she looked away. She shook her head, taking a few steps back.

"Harry, I can't-"

"I don't care," he interrupted fiercely, before he could stop himself, knowing why she couldn't. "I don't care about your father!"

Ginny raised her eyes in shock, but tried to compose herself. "Why don't you care what my Dad thinks? He considers you as part of the family!"

Harry shook his head, trying to stop the words, but failed. "_Voldemort_, Ginny," he said coldly. "I don't care that he's your father!"

Ginny gasped in shock, and Harry also gasped, realizing what he just said.

He was a bloody reckless Gryffindor. And right now, he wanted nothing more than to be in Ravenclaw, and then at least he'd have some brains. But he wasn't in Ravenclaw, he was in Gryffindor.

And he was going to face the consequences.

* * *

Ginny had just wanted to let go of her worries, and the expectations of her father, and before she knew it she was snogging Harry Potter. She liked him, she knew she did, and she knew it was dangerous. She knew he would end up hurt if she lost control of her emotions, but she couldn't stop. She couldn't stop the desire, the pleasure, and the happiness. For once she was actually care-free. For once in her life she wasn't worried about the war or a mission or what her father wanted. For once she did something for herself.

But when he asked her to be his girlfriend, she froze. That was exactly what her father wanted, for them to get close, and then for her to break his heart. She couldn't do that, because she actually cared for him. If Harry ever found out, he would hate her, but at least he'd stay away. She had almost told him the other day, but couldn't. She didn't know how to say the words. And now, she still couldn't.

"Harry, I can't-"Ginny began.

"I don't care," he interrupted before she could finish. "I don't care about your father!"

Ginny raised her eyes in shock. Did he know? The way he has been acting lately… but he _couldn't_. She had been so careful. She tried to compose herself, attempting to convince herself that he didn't know. "Why don't you care what my Dad thinks? He considers you as part of the family!" she said, trying to sound hurt.

Harry shook his head, and before she knew it, he said the words she was terrified of. "_Voldemort_, Ginny," he said coldly. "I don't care that he's your father!"

Ginny felt herself go into a stunned state, and all the blood rushed out of her face.

He knew. _He knew_ and he said he didn't care! Her heart ached, but she pushed away the rising hope. She couldn't betray her father, he didn't understand! The words: _I don't care that he's your father_ echoed in her mind. She pulled out her wand, knowing what she had to do. Even if it hurt, she had to save this boy, and there was only one way. _He had to hate her._

"But I do care," she hissed, raising her wand, and ready to attack the guy she had fallen for.

* * *

**Well that's it. Interesting right? I hadn't planned on it happening this chapter, but before I knew it I had written it. Haha funny how that works...**

**I'll update soon:) Please review. **

**Theres much more to come!**


	12. Fire and Ice

**Hey all! Sorry its been forever... I realized I made a mistake in chapter nine when I wrote that Dracos and Harrys detention would be that night... I never put it in that chapter, so it will be in the next chapter:) Thanks for your support, it means a lot... I have lots in store for you my dear readers:) the plot only begins...**

* * *

It was silent for a moment, and then, like a building power, it all exploded.

A jet of purple and red lights flew at Harry, and he quickly side-stepped it.

"Ginny, stop!" he yelled, raising his own wand warily.

"I can't," she said coldly. "Not until you are dead." She sent a few more spells at him, forcing him to raise a shield.

Harry tried to calm down his racing heart, and wondered how to get out of this situation. He threw a stunner at her, which she deflected with a careless flick of her wand.

"My father is no fan of you, Harry," she continued quietly, her face hard and determined. "I am sorry for this, but it is how it has to be."

And with that, she sent a flurry of spells at him, leaving Harry on the defensive end. Dodging and spinning out of spells, he took a deep breath before throwing his own back. He tried to send strong, but non-lethal spells, but none got through. Ginny threw them away like they were harmless tickling jinxes, and Harry cursed. She sent a cutting curse at him, and he just managed to move out of its direct course, but some of it still hit him. Harry grabbed his left arm, but forced himself to ignore the splitting pain and the blood. Ducking under another red curse, he sent another stunner her way, and then followed it up with an illusion spell he read in one of the books from Tom.

Ginny set up a shield, and it stopped the stunner, but the illusion spell just faded into the shield. Ginny's expression was that of confusion, until it conformed into a look of horror.

Harry watched silently as she was faced by her worst fears, and knew right away that this was his best option. He had sent a dark, but relatively not dangerous spell, and she hadn't expected anything like it. Sending a quick stunner, she was knocked unconscious, and Harry grabbed her quickly. Clutching his pendant, he whispered, "Gryffindor's domain."

Instantly, he was pulled away from the ground of Hogwarts, and found himself in the familiar room, holding tightly to Ginny. He met his parent's shocked eyes, and got to his feet quickly.

"Hi Mum, Dad," Harry greeted softly. "I did something stupid again."

James raised his eyebrows, while Lily shook her head in amused exasperation.

"Does it have anything to do with the girl currently on the floor?" James commented.

"Five points to Gryffindor, Mr. Sherlock," Harry, slightly cynically, causing disapproving looks from his mother, and confusion for his father who had no idea who Sherlock was.

"What happened, Harry?" A new voice said, and Harry turned to stare at Tom.

Harry hesitated for a moment, before starting his tale on how he got started saying things without thinking, and how they got in a fight. Once he mentioned he got wounded, the three adults immediately stared at his arm, and realized he was indeed bleeding.

Lily waved her wand, and the wound started to heal slowly, until it was completely healed. Smiling in gratitude, Harry continued his tale.

"And after I stunned her, I brought us back here," he finished, waiting for their reactions.

He was met by silence for a moment, until Tom spoke up.

"Well, we wanted answers, and I guess this is one way to get it," he sighed. "Sometimes you are just too much of a Gryffindor."

James let out a gasp of mock outrage. "Is that even possible?" he questioned.

Tom rolled his eyes, while Lily smiled, and Harry snorted. The amused atmosphere faded quickly, leaving the tension to replace it.

"What are you going to do with her?" Harry asked quietly.

"I'm not sure yet," Tom said. "We need to ask her some questions, but other than that I don't know."

Harry bit his lip, glancing from Tom, to his parents, who also looked somewhat baffled by their situation.

"We could obliviate her," Lily suggested. "And just send her back."

Harry glanced at his mother, uncertain he wanted the events to be undone. Now that the words had been said, he felt it was wrong to take them away.

To Harry's surprise, he didn't need to speak up, because James quickly shook his head.

"No," James said firmly. "Disaster would just happen again, and this time Harry might not get so lucky. She is misguided, and dangerous, but I think she can still be turned to the right side. We cannot just give up on her."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Thanks," he mouthed at his dad, who grinned back in response.

Harry turned to look at Tom, waiting for his input. The leader of the light stared at Ginny's peaceful, unconscious face, and nodded. "I agree," he said gently. "It will be sure to cause quite the uproar for her to vanish. Hogwarts and Voldemort will be in a rage, but it is essential we get this girl on our side."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief, glad for once his impulsiveness might work out.

Lily suddenly pulled her son into a hug. "You need to visit more, young man," she scolded, when she released him. "The only time I ever see you is when you are in trouble."

"I am always in trouble, Mum," he said sheepishly, but smiled half-heartedly. "But I will visit more, why wouldn't I?" He winced, fighting away his own doubts and hating to lie. "I've dreamed of having you in my life for ages, after all," he said, this time truthfully.

Lily smiled sadly, and glanced at James, who was also watching his son. "As did we," she whispered. "As did we."

"Why didn't you get me earlier at school then?" he said suddenly, a bit of anger in his voice. "Why didn't you seek me out earlier?"

James came closer to stand next to Lily, and put his hand on Harry's face gently. "You were going through so much, so we thought our presence would only add more strain. Your magic hadn't developed enough to be strong enough for the level of power occlumency would need to push out Dumbledore as well." James paused, bowing his head slightly in shame. "It was a mistake, Harry, and we should have known that we were trying to protect you too much."

"We shouldn't have left you with abusive monsters, either," Lily said, her eyes full of pain and guilt. "But we didn't know what to do. We couldn't get into the wards of Private Drive, and Dumbledore was always watching. We made a serious error in thinking you would be better off without us."

Harry looked at his parents, tears in his eyes. "No," he murmured. "I would never be better off without you. But I am sure you'd be better off without me." He turned away, ashamed.

Two gasps followed that statement, and he looked up. Both Lily and James were crying, and they enveloped him into an embrace. "Don't you ever say that," Lily said firmly in his ear. "You are the best thing that ever happened to us."

"We love you, Harry," James said resolutely, holding him tightly. "We always did and always will. Nothing will ever change that, cub."

Harry didn't know how long he stood there, being held by his parents, but he didn't mind one bit. He smiled into his mother hair, glad to feel loved, even if it lasted only a minute. When he finally pulled away, he felt very unsure of what to do.

"Where did Tom go?" he asked shakily, looking around the room.

Lily smiled, following his gaze around the room. "He left to give us some privacy I presume." She suddenly turned serious. "How long have you been thinking that we saw you as a burden, and that is why we didn't tell you sooner?"

Harry bowed his head, playing with the hem of his cloak. He knew that no matter what she said, he was still a worthless, weak freak. Nothing would change that. And if they knew how long he had doubted them, they would only see him as ungrateful.

"Harry," Lily said in concern, and he glanced up to see both James and Lily looking at him in deep concern. This made him feel very guilt; he had no right to be cared for.

He shook his head, fighting the panic that was developing. He closed his eyes tightly, clutching his hands in fists.

A larger, more masculine hand touched his shoulder, and he flinched, waiting for some sort of punishment.

"I'm sorry," he gasped. "Please, I am so sorry! I don't mean to be ungrateful. I swear I don't!"

"Harry," James spoke softly, cautiously. "It's ok. It's your father. I'm not going to hurt you."

Harry was so used to that being a lie. His uncle often would say that, but it was never true. But Harry opened his eyes, decided to face his punishment with some of the little bravery he had left.

James face was filled with so much horror, so much pain, and so much concern, that it brought Harry to his knees. Harry buried his face into his arms, which were folded on his legs. "Stop," he pleaded, not realizing he was begging out loud. "Stop pretending you care. It only hurts worse."

"Harry, please," Lily murmured. "We aren't going to hurt you. We aren't lying. We care about you."

Harry looked up when he felt the feminine hand on his face, and was shocked by the level of love on his parents faces. He dissolved into tears, letting the tears that he had kept inside of him since he was very young. The years of keeping it in seemed to explode, like a dam overflowing that had to burst. He cried until he couldn't cry any longer. When Harry finally stopped, his mum was rubbing his back soothingly, while his dad was running his hand gently through Harry's hair.

"Since the first day," Harry confessed, his head bowed. "I knew that you didn't want me. I knew I was a disgrace. And that is why I didn't visit unless it was absolutely necessary."

Lily lifted his face with one of her small, thin hands and her teary green eyes bore into his own eyes. "You are _not_ a burden," she said in an unfalteringly voice. "You are _not_ a freak." A tear fell when she saw him flinch at the word freak. "You are our _son_," she whispered passionately. "You mean _everything_ to us. You have made us extremely proud, and we always want to see you."

Harry seemed to realize that she meant what she said, even if it was a crazy thing for her to believe, and he placed trust in the woman, and in this man, hoping that they wouldn't hurt him in the future. He climbed to his feet, as did James and Lily, and Harry promptly hugged them, testing his luck, before releasing them. And they just _smiled_ at him, like they didn't mind!

"Thank you," he whispered, before composing himself and quickly changing the subject. "What am I supposed to tell everyone if they mention Ginny?"

"Say nothing," James told him, trying to compose himself as well. "Act as if you know nothing of the situation."

Harry nodded, before glancing at his watch. "I better get back." He hesitated. "I'll come back tomorrow if that is okay." At their gentle nods, he smiled slightly in relief, letting out a deep breath he had been holding. "Please don't talk to Ginny without me," he requested.

"We won't," Lily promised, grabbing her husband's hand in her own. She kissed him on the cheek, and James gave him a one-armed hug, and then he turned away. He only got a few steps before his dad's voice called out to him.

"Oh and Harry?"

Harry turned to look at his parents, who were smiling knowingly.

"Why didn't you just show the memory to us in a Pensieve?" James asked.

"I-I-"

They laughed at his flaming face, and he quickly left, not wanting to face any more embarrassing moments. Today had definitely been an exhausting day, and an emotional one, and nothing sounded better than some sleep.

He touched his pendant, calling out the command to send him back to Hogwarts, and he ran to the Gryffindor common room. He was quickly met by red streamers and other party decorations, and smiled tiredly at the laughter and chatter. He bypassed everyone, thanking everyone who congratulated him, but then he was stopped by the girl in the Golden Trio.

"Harry," she said, with a smile. "Have you seen Ginny?"

"No," he lied quickly, and pretended to not see her look of relief.

And so it began. More lies in his life, this time about the daughter of the dark lord who he just kidnapped. Good thing he knew occlumency and knew how to hide the truth and keep a facade. That was the only good thing the Dursleys taught him. But he wished he knew how to pick out lies and how to tell who to trust.

"I'm going to bed," Harry said, smiling uncertainly at Hermione, before bidding her goodnight and going up to his dorm.

He knew what he had to do. He had to learn legilimency and he had to learn it fast. He could no longer just guess who to trust, he had to know. Hopefully Hermione won't know occlumency, because this is his only option. But if he finds out that Hermione can be trusted, he will tell her everything and help her with her own tribulations. Hermione was acting differently, especially around the new professor, and Harry wanted so badly to know why.

He had so many thoughts running through his head that he quickly grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill with ink. He started writing, trying to gather his thoughts.

_Problem number one: Ginny_

_Problem number two: being ready to face Voldemort and Dumbledore_

_Problem number three: the new professors_

_Problem number four: Hermione_

_Problem number five: Snape and Remus_

_Problem number six: controlling powers and staying undercover_

_Problem number seven: having parents and making sure they like me_

_Problem number eight: making allies from other houses_

_Problem number nine: McGonagall and other people that are suspicious of me_

Harry stopped writing, nodded and thought it summed up everything pretty well. Having written all it down, it helped him organize his thoughts. The Boy-Who-Lived reread the writings, before promptly setting it on fire wandlessly. He couldn't let the paper get into the wrong hands, after all. Watching the paper burn into nothing, Harry wished he could do the same with his problems. Harry thought about setting Voldemort and Dumbledore on fire, and smirked. Maybe someday…

* * *

**Well, hope you liked it... not the best, but very important. I thought it was about time for Harry to address his doubts with his parents, because he was so abused, so its hard for him to believe he is loved... I realize I have neglected that a bit... And don't worry Snape will make his showing VERY soon:) Thanks, please please review and tell me what you think...**


	13. Imposters

**Hello all! So I actually don't have to apologize for the wait this time, I thought I updated pretty quickly for me and my busy scheduele. Soccer is ending tomorrow and I'll have more time once the holiday gets closer. So, don't sorry:) And for all you that don't know, I have a new story out called Enslaved. Check it out please! Ok, and to all of you out there who are also reading my fan fic Expected of Me, I'm sorry for the wait on that. I have a bit of writers block on that story... but for now it will not be abandoned...**

**Well that's it... Enjoy:)**

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Harry made his way down the dungeons, shivering slightly by the drop of the climate. He still couldn't understand why they let it be so cold down there, and casted a silent warming charm over himself. Feeling heat spread around his body like a blanket, he relaxed from his rigid position. He remembered all his treks over his years at Hogwarts from his detentions with Snape, and grimaced. His thoughts turned to the missing potions master once again, wishing he knew where he was or if he was even alive.

When Harry finally arrived to the potions room, he was a bit short of breath, and realized he really did need to start training with Tom and his parents. With the reminded of his parents, he bit his lip, but focused on what they had told him yesterday. They cared about him and wanted him to visit. Maybe he would visit tomorrow.

Harry smiled to himself, before turning back to the matter at hand, and knocked politely twice. After receiving an allowance to enter, he pushed the open up gently. He entered the room quietly, glancing around and noticed Draco was already there, standing by Professor Malfoy. Harry walked over to them, grinning at Draco, and nodding at his professor.

"Hey Harry," Draco greeted, glancing briefly at his uncle before doing so.

"Hi Drake," Harry said smartly, smirking at Draco's death glare, but the blonde lessened it a moment later, resigned that he would just have to get used to it. Harry turned to Leander Malfoy, and noticed that he was looking carefully blank.

"Sit down, Draco, Mr. Potter," the man said firmly, waving to the desk. He then waved his wand, whispering protection spells under his breath, and the two boys looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"Uncle?" Draco asked curiously.

"We need to talk," he said forcefully, placing his hands on the desks they were sitting by.

Harry and Draco looked on in confusion, but curiosity, and nodded.

"The only reason I am imparting of this information to you," he continued softly, "is because I know you both know occlumency, because I tested it when you came in and was unable to break in." At this he flashed a puzzled look at Harry, as if trying to understand that.

Harry and Draco narrowed their eyes, glancing at each other, before turning back to the Professor.

"What's going on, Uncle Leander?" Draco asked, curious but slightly wary.

"Well first off, I'm not your uncle," he said bluntly, and both Harry and Draco froze, before flashing their wands out at him.

"Who are you?" Harry hissed, his eyes cold.

"And what did you do with my uncle?" Draco added. His expression was one that would have sent lesser men into shivers.

The imposter Malfoy smiled, not even raising his own wand back at the two teenagers.

"My name is Severus Snape. I think you know me?"

Harry and Draco gasped, their wands falling to the floor.

"Sev?" Draco choked.

"Snape?" Harry yelled, shocked.

The man's smile turned into a smirk and he grabbed a vial from his pocket. He downed the potion inside it quickly. Before their eyes, the blonde brother of Lucius Malfoy vanished, and was replaced by a man that greatly resembled Severus Snape.

Harry wandlessly directed his wand hastily back into his hand and pointed it at Snape again. Apparently the few differences of his features were enough to make Harry suspicious.

"When was the last time you saw me?" he drilled.

Snape looked amused, and smirked. "An occlumency lesson in which you disappeared out of thin air after some… startling revelations," he answered easily.

Harry lowered his wand, relaxing. "Snape, it _is_ you," he said in relief. "Why do you look different?" Harry then decided that was unimportant and continued on. "I need to talk to you!"

Snape smirked. "As do I, Potter." He turned to his god smacked godson and chuckled. "Maybe some explanations are in order?"

At Harry's and Draco's urgent nods, he smirked.

"Thought so," he said smoothly. He sat down gracefully on a chair, motioning for them to do the same. They copied his movements, waiting impatiently for him to explain what was going on. He looked at them seriously, as if assessing them with his dark eyes.

"First off, I'm not sure how you became friends or who this Tom person is, but I expect you will explain once I am done with my tale." He looked at the searchingly. "I am not sure how much you know, but Dumbledore is-"

"A lying, manipulative, and evil old coot?" Draco cut in, an eyebrow raised.

"A back-stabbing, pathetic, and heartless old man?" Harry added harshly.

Snape's eyebrows raised in surprise. "It seems I can move on to the next part then," he said, amused, and smirked at the two boys. "I didn't want to leave Dumbledore here all alone to be free to do his manipulations, so I decided a little spying was in order." He paused, smirking. "Unfortunately, the only people I could trust to keep my secret and let me borrow their identity are on his bad side. For example, Evander Grindelwald."

Both of the teenage wizards narrowed their eyes, curious.

"Then why-"

Snape raised his hand, stopping Harry's question.

"Evander wanted revenge for something Dumbledore did to him in the past-"

"He killed his father!" Draco interrupted, as if realizing something.

Snape glared at him, pinching the bridge of his nose. Both of the boys grimaced slightly, realizing they kept on cutting him short.

"Are you done?" Snape snapped, and both boys immediately nodded, looking apologetic.

"Yes, sir," they chorused.

"You better be," he retorted, before softening his cold expression. "Anyways, I visited Leander, and he agreed to let me use his identity for a short while so I could gather information and check on you and the other students."

Draco glanced at Harry, who was looking grim. "You better not get caught, sir, or he'll kill you," Harry warned.

Snape snorted. "Worry about yourself for once, Potter," he ordered.

"Harry," he corrected quietly, his eyes downcast slightly.

Snape's face relaxed from his cool mask. "Of course, Harry," he murmured. "I didn't forget, I promise."

Harry looked at the man, and smiled in gratitude. He wondered how he would take the fact that his parents were very much alive, and Tom Riddle wasn't an evil wizard.

"Remember when I vanished, Professor?" Harry asked, biting his lip and casting a look at Draco.

Snape's eyes hardened slightly at the reminder of the experience. "How could I forget?" he said ironically.

Draco smirked beside him, and Harry glared at him.

"Well, you see, it all started with this invisible-to-most-people snake…."

At Snape's disbelieving look, Harry sighed. He was in for a long evening.

* * *

Harry landed in Gryffindor's domain, feeling slightly insecure, but forced himself to push away the depressing emotions. He smiled when he saw Tom sitting on the couch, reading a thick book.

"Harry," he said, smiling, a look of surprise on his face. "What can I do for you?"

Harry met his eyes directly, hoping he wouldn't mind his rude and unannounced appearance. "I think it's time for my training to start," Harry said, before glancing away quickly.

Tom nodded, and got to his feet, causing Harry to look up as Tom walked over to him.

"Let's get into the dueling room, then," Tom suggested, with a small grin. He motioned to a door behind Harry, and Harry turned and followed him out of the large sitting room. Pushing through black double-doors, they came into a spacious room with a large platform in the center. It had a large lion painted onto the dueling platform, and Harry smiled at the banners of Gryffindor hanging down the walls.

"Where are my parents?" Harry asked curiously, turning back to the Leader of the Light.

"I think they are just in their rooms," Tom answered, shrugging. "They will probably come out soon."

Harry nodded in understanding, and climbed up the dueling stage, excited, until he noticed Tom's sly grin.

"What?" Harry asked, tensing. A sly Tom could be anything but good.

Tom's grin grew even larger. "It's been a long time since I've dueled, you're parents have long since refused to duel with me."

Harry froze, staring at the man in horror, and wondered what he had gotten himself into. The man wasted no time, and instantly started throwing spells. Harry ducked and dodged, throwing his own back, trying to remember all the new spells from the book he had received from Tom. The man stylishly and skillfully moved aside and also flicked the spells away carelessly that he didn't evade.

Harry gritted his teeth as a bone-crushing spell was shot at him, followed by a fire spell. He put a shield up for the bone-crushing spell, and quickly added a shield of water in front of it to stop the flames. He managed to calm most of the fiery waves, but a few of the blazes escaped and caught him on the left shoulder. Tom stopped, his face concerned, and lowered his wand, but Harry ignored the pain and started to attack. He sprinted to the right and sent a series of parseltounge spells and curses at the man, who was caught off guard. The man recovered quickly, and the weaving and moving of the two wizards seemed to go on for a while.

At one spell sent at Harry, it was sent with such intensity that his wand flew out of his hand. Harry smirked and continued on, and got part of Tom's leg with a cutting curse. The experienced man let out a few choice words, but didn't lose stride in the duel. Only a minute later, he sent a strong rush of water out of his wand, and Harry flicked it away easily with his hand. The water fell to his feet, and was ignored.

"You've been practicing," Tom commented, slowing down his pace, and eyeing the boy piercingly. "Very good."

Harry smiled slightly, and kept his eyes on Tom, alert. Just like expected, the man started sending chains of hexes and curses at him, and Harry shielded them, until he was forced to move and avoid one particularly dangerous one. As he did so, Tom wandlessly, with his spare hand, turned the water under his feet into ice. The water, now ice, caused Harry to slip, and he fell hard on his back. Instantaneously, the Light Leader was next to him, his wand pointed directly at Harry.

Then Tom laughed, and helped Harry up. "That was the most fun I've had in weeks," he said, grinning. "You are fun to spar with."

Harry looked at the man, and nodded in agreement.

"Now what I'd really like to see," Tom continued, smirking sinisterly, "is for you to beat up on your old man."

Harry snorted at Tom's sense of enjoyment. That man truly was something, and most of it was a Slytherin something. Before he could comment, the doors were slammed open by a heaving-breathing James. The solemn look in his eyes made the two prodigies stiffen.

"She's awake," James announced, and both Tom and Harry ran over to him. "And she's not talking."

Harry shared a look with Tom, and ran a hand through his hair as Tom nodded at him encouragingly.

"I need to talk to her," Harry decided, his voice firm.

James looked ready to argue about it being dangerous and foolish, but Tom sent James a look that made him pause.

"Will you take me to her?" Harry requested, his heart beating erratically in his chest. This wasn't Ginny Weasley, it was Ginerva Riddle, and Harry was afraid. Was it all a lie? Her friendship, and her romantic interest? Did she really hate him and was only using him?

Harry bit his lip, and his dad's answer brought him out of his thoughts.

"Come," James said softly, and took his son's arm gently.

He led them through the double doors, through the sitting room, down a hallway, and into a small, white, and windowless room with a bed, bookcase, and attached bathroom. Sitting on the bed was Ginerva, whose face was cold and unemotional. Ginny stared into his emerald eyes, and Harry found himself unable to speak.

"Hello, Harry," she said coldly, and he went rigid.

"Ginny," Harry answered curtly.

The red-haired girl smirked confidently, but Harry noticed that her eyes were distant and Harry thought he could detect a hint of uncertainty. What was she hiding? But so quickly, it vanished, and Harry assumed that he was seeing things.

Harry knew he was shaking, but he didn't want to show weakness to her. He took a deep breath, preparing for the worst. "We need to talk, Ginny."

She smirked. "I know," she said, cynically. "I know."

And, then, like a volcano, it all erupted.

* * *

**I'm sorry, was that mean of me? Oh well, you will just have to wait and see... ;) And yah Snape's back! You will see much more of him now, don't worry. He's one of my fav characters;) Well please review and tell me what you think!**


	14. Behind Masks

**Hey readers! Thanks for all the reviews! I am sorry it was kinda a long delay, but I've had finals and stuff. I know, I know, lots of excuses, but thats life:) Hope everyone is having a good first month of 2011! **

**Well... here it goes, chapter 14, I hope you like it. It's not my fav. but it will do... :) thanks again for all the great support!**

* * *

The door slammed behind Harry, leaving him and Ginny alone, and she stared in astonishment at his wandless and wordless magic. Her eyes went instantly back to him, apprehensive. Harry felt like screaming at her, but that was not what happened first. No words could come out of his mouth, but instead it was like a wave of power drowning her. His aura was so powerful that she flinched back, startled. His magic engulfed the room, surrounding Harry as he glared at Ginny coolly. The daughter of the Dark Lord looked as if she was choking on his magic, so raw and potent that she felt overwhelmed. Seeing a touch of fear in her eyes, Harry felt his magic abruptly pull back, and he barely was able to stay on his feet.

"Harry?" she whispered, frozen.

Harry's emerald gaze snapped up to look into her eyes, trembling in both anger and the effort to control his building power. "Why is everything in my life a lie?" he asked harshly, taking deep breaths to reign in his magic. "Why couldn't someone actually like me for me, for once?"

She winced at his words, looking away, but her face back to its mask. She didn't answer, leaving the silence like a cold reminder of the distance now between them.

"I like you Ginny," he murmured quietly. "But it seems I was falling for a bloody good act on your part. I hate your father, and it seems like he's not the only one in your family I have a reason to dislike."

She had no reaction to his words, but continued to stare blankly down at the ceiling.

"I want to help you Ginny," he continued, a bit colder. "I don't want to hate you, but you are making it harder and harder for me to do something about it. I don't understand how you could love such a monster-"

Ginny tensed at that, looking back at him for a split second. "I never said that," she said quietly, the words coming out of her mouth before she could bring them back.

Harry looked at her in confusion. "Then why-"

She laughed coldly, interrupting his question. "He _was_ a Slytherin. So he is quite good at coming up for a reason for me to listen to him. He has no need to make me love him; he just needs to find a good enough cause."

Harry was surprised by her words, and looked at her calculatedly. "What cause?" he asked, losing his cold edge.

She shook her head, tensing up again, and hiding behind her cool façade. Her fear of her emotions being exposed reminded Harry of himself. He stared at her for a long moment, wondering what he could possibly say to make her open up. He silently walked over to her side, and placed his hand on hers. She turned to him in confusion as he sat down beside her on the bed. She glanced down at their touching hands, and then met his eyes again.

"Ginny, please," he murmured, looking deep into her amber-brown eyes. "I need to know if this is all a lie, or if I actually meant something to you. Please."

Ginny bit her lip, her mask slipping slightly. She glanced slightly away from his penetrating gaze. "My mother," she finally whispered. "He'll kill her if I ever disobey him. I can't let my mother die. I _can't_!" A lone tear slid down her cheek, but she quickly brushed it away.

Harry's hands curled into fists, his eyes holding sadness, but also a dark fury. "That bloody monster," Harry growled. "Why would he do that?"

"He has to control me somehow," Ginny said softly, with a small shrug. Her expression was full of a heartbreaking, sorrowful acceptance.

Harry squeezed her hand lightly, without thinking, hoping to reassure her. She finally met his eyes fully at his unexpected gesture, and he gathered up the courage to ask her a vital question.

"Does that mean you actually cared for me? Or was it really just a ruse?"

She smiled, albeit somewhat sadly. "I always cared Harry, which was the problem. I tried so hard not to, but you were everything that I always admired. I wanted to run away from you and your enchanting friendship, but my father wanted the complete opposite of that." She sighed, looking at him behind her eyelashes. "And here we are. And we can't be together, no matter how much we want to." At this she looked at their hands dejectedly, but made no move to pull hers away.

"There's always a way," Harry argued, for some reason feeling like all she said was true, and knowing he couldn't give up on her.

"How?" she asked hopelessly, sighing.

"We could help your Mum escape, and take down Voldemort once and for all." Harry grinned charmingly at her, and she shook her head in slight amusement.

"I don't think it'd be that easy, Harry," she denied quietly. "Dumbledore-"

"Ahh, yes, Dumbledore," Harry hissed, his eyes ignited with anger. A spark went through them that made Ginny shiver. "That old man will find a horrible end, if it's the last thing I do."

Ginny stared at Harry in awe, amazed by the level of power coming off him again. "How did you unblock your powers?" she asked, saying something she'd been wondering for a while now. "And how are your parents alive?"

Harry smiled, and quickly replayed the story of him meeting Tom and his parents, but leaving out the abuse. She was shocked that her uncle was still alive, as well as Harry's parents, but was also glad that something good had happened in his life for once.

"Will they help me?" Ginny asked quietly, after he was done explaining everything. She looked oddly self-conscious. "Seeing who my father is…"

"Yes," Harry said firmly, leaving no room for argument. "This is what we had been hoping would happen."

Ginny smiled at him, relieved. "Now what?"

"I'm not certain about anything yet, but I got a few ideas, and I know we'll think of something…"

Ginny felt hopeful and genuinely pleased for once in a long time. Without thinking, she leaned in, pressing her lips to his for a brief second. She pulled back, smirking at his startled expression. But then he relaxed into a charming smile, and he leaned in slowly, gauging her feelings. When she too leaned in, their lips touched, and they shared a soft, heartfelt kiss. Neither of them could say how long it lasted, because it felt both too short and an eternity of bliss.

They leaned back, both tremendously happy, and gasping for air. They sat there in a comfortable, heartfelt quiet, holding each other tightly.

"Harry," she breathed, in a surprisingly timid voice, breaking the silence. "May I meet your parents and my uncle now?"

Harry grinned at her, truly glad now that he had been impulsive before. It all worked out in the end. "Of course," he said. He stood up, helping her up gently, and took her hand in his.

Things were going to work out. He knew they would, even if it ended up with him and Voldemort fighting in the end, or dueling Dumbledore. He had to believe this, because it was the only thing keeping him alive.

* * *

Harry collapsed on the bed in his dormitory, thinking hard about all that had transpired. His parents and Tom had accepted Ginny easily after a quick explanation, and together they formed a plan. Ginny would go on as if nothing was different, and be the key to taking Voldemort down from the inside. The Dark Lord didn't suspect treachery from her, so they hoped it would work out fine.

He and Ginny had come up with a solution for why she was missing, and hoped it seemed plausible. She would simply go by the alibi that her cat died, and so she had been too upset to go to class. Ginny's cat was actually warm and snug in Gryffindor's Domain. Harry was worried that someone like Hermione wouldn't believe them, but he was hoping it would cause no suspicion. Yes, there was some loop holes to the story, but they felt it would be the easiest excuse to use.

Both he and Ginny had departed to their separate dormitories, her having some explaining to do, while Harry was just tired. His accidental magic took more from him than he expected. Without a second thought, he closed his eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

The next few days were rather uneventful for Harry. The explanation for Ginny passed without much scrutiny, and Harry hadn't had any classes with either Snape or Grindelwald. They were both still quite a mystery, but Harry was glad Snape was on his side again. There was something about that man that he trusted. Harry knew that Professor Snape actually cared about him, judging by the response to his abuse, so Harry felt he was safe to talk to the man freely.

One good thing that happened was that he and Ginny became officially a couple. Some were already called them the "golden couple", but there were also many people who were jealous. Harry couldn't care less what they thought, and was instead very happy with her. There was something about her that drew him in, and he didn't want to let go.

It was later that night that Harry finally broached a subject with her that he had been wondering about. They were out on a walk, and he asked her who her mother was and why she was with Voldemort. Ginny's smile dropped and she froze.

"Please, Ginny," Harry said quietly, taking her hand in his. "I want to understand you better, and your life."

She took a deep breath, staring at him for a long time, before nodding. "My mother is a beautiful woman, and from a long line of purity. And my father wanted an heir." She glanced at Harry, biting her lip. "My mum didn't agree with the prejudices of blood, and she married a muggle and they had a kid together. My father had watched her for a long time now, and was angry that she chose a muggle over what he believed in." Ginny stopped walking, and turned to face her boyfriend. "He confronted her, and threatened to kill her family, but she offered to join his side. But she asked that he kept them alive so she could use them as a cover so she would still be trusted by the light." Ginny sighed, and sat down on the grass slowly, pulling Harry with her. He wrapped an arm around her, holding her close, and waited patiently for her to continue.

"He forced her to become his Dark Lady," Ginny said softly, after a minute of silence. "And I came as a result." Ginny looked disgusted, and Harry kissed her softly on the forehead. "And my mom has been somewhat of a prisoner ever since. I was trained in all matter of dark arts, but I never fully agreed with him; especially after I met you." She fell silent, lost in her thoughts, and Harry smiled gently at her.

"Thank you for telling me, Ginny," Harry murmured. He was relieved that she trusted him with this information. He had been worried that she wouldn't.

She nodded, leaning into his chest. They sat in a comfortable silence, both thinking deeply about their futures. Harry realized that Ginny never told him who her mother was, and gazed at her.

"Ginny?" Harry asked quietly.

She drew back slightly to look at him, curious at his tone. "Yes?"

"What's your mother's name?"

Ginny smiled slightly. "Andromeda Tonks-Riddle," she said.

Harry stiffened in surprise. "Tonks?" he gasped. "That means Nymphadora Tonks is your half-sister!" he realized, his eyes wide.

Ginny nodded, her eyes now dark. "I've always wanted a sister, and she doesn't even know I exist."

Harry did the only thing he could in the situation, and embraced her tightly. "Don't worry, Gin," he whispered. "Everything will turn out all right in the end, and you'll have your sister. You will."

Ginny smiled sadly, but kissed Harry lightly on the lips. "Thanks, Harry," she said quietly, before dragging him to her feet. "Come on, Mr. Chosen One, even you have to do your homework," she teased, her expression lightening up.

Harry laughed, rolling his eyes, and followed his girlfriend to Gryffindor tower.

* * *

It was later that night that Harry went to meet Draco by the room of requirements. He got there first, and stood outside the entryway, waiting for his Slytherin best friend to meet up with him. They frequently met in this very spot, usually once a day, and Harry wished they could be friends in public.

When the blonde finally got there, he was about ten minutes later. Harry grinned slightly at him, but raised an eyebrow in question.

"I never thought I'd see the day that Draco Malfoy would be late to something as important as a meeting with me," Harry joked, and Draco rolled his eyes.

"Sorry," he said, smirking slightly. "My friends were being nosy again. I had to make up another excuse."

Harry sighed, leaning against the wall. "This is getting to be quite the trouble, Drake," Harry commented carelessly.

"I know, Har," the Slytherin replied, smirking. He snorted at Harry's stricken face. "I thought you needed a nickname too, besides oh great Chosen One-"

"Oh, shut up Draco, you prat," Harry said, rolling his eyes at his friend, and shoving him lightly.

"You know you love me, Har," Draco answered sweetly, looking at the Gryffindor innocently.

They stared at each other for a second before breaking into laughter. When they finally calmed down, they went into the room of requirements together, talking animatedly about quidditch and girls. What neither of them realized was around the corner of the hallway were a group of students, all dressed in Slytherin robes. They stared at each other in shock, astounded by the fact that the two worst enemies in Hogwarts were acting like best buds.

"Good thing we followed Draco," Blaise Zabini said quietly to his fellow Slytherins. "Something is very wrong."

The others looked at him and nodded shakily, still stunned.

"Why was he with Harry Bloody Potter?" Daphne Greengrass asked disbelievingly, her eyes narrowed.

Pansy Parkison bit her lip. "And why would Draco keep something like this from us?" she glanced around to her friends in confusion.

Theodore Nott was the last to speak, and when he did his eyes gleamed darkly. "I do not know," he said coldly. "But we will be sure to find out."

* * *

**Hope you liked it! I got much more waiting for you, don't you worry! Any questions just ask... PLEASE REVIEW!**


	15. Uprisings

**So sorry for the wait! I would give excuses, but none of them are really that good. But still, I'm sorry and I have NOT abandoned this story nor will I anytime soon. This is a bit of a filler chapter, nothing really big happens but it does have some important stuff in it. So enjoy:)**

The next morning Harry made no effort to be civil to Ronald Weasley. He sat next to Neville, who looked shocked that he actually noticing him, to Harry's regret. He clutched Ginny's hand, smiling at the fiery girl he had started to depend on.

"Hey Harry," Neville said, somewhat quietly, but with a confidence that wasn't there when they first met. Neville certainly had changed, in more ways than one. He had lost his childish features and now had quite the athletic fit. His earlier shyness was also much diminished, and he was doing much better in his classes.

"Hey Neville," Harry said, smiling. "You don't mind us sitting here, do you?"

Neville shook his head, but still looked curious. "Why aren't you with Ron and Hermione?"

Harry shrugged, and loaded some food onto his plate. He noticed that Ron was throwing them furious looks and Hermione was confused. "I spend too much time with them," he said. "I never get to know anyone else and I regret that."

Neville nodded, eyeing him much more carefully. "Something's changed about you," he said softly, and glancing at Ginny. "Both of you."

"The war changes people," Ginny said just as softly, her grip on Harry tightening.

"Yes," Neville agreed, somber. "It does."

They ate in silence for a few moments, before the subject of classes came up again, and they started to talk good-naturedly, oblivious to the conflict that was slowly building in Gryffindor and the rest of Hogwarts.

* * *

Harry sat next to Neville and Ginny in the library, enjoying their free time. Susan Bones was also there because, to Harry's surprise, she was good friends with Neville. Hannah Abbot came along with Susan, and they were all chatting quietly. Harry found that they were actually very interesting and fun to spend time with. He thought he would crack a rib from laughing a few times. In fact, only about thirty minutes passed before they were kicked out of the library for causing too much ruckus. They continued outside by the lake, although it was pretty chilly outside. Winter was approaching quickly, and they were expecting snowfalls soon. Despite that, they decided to enjoy some fresh air and managed to stay warm with the help of some heating charms.

And Harry was learning things very quickly about Hannah and Susan and the nature of Hufflepuffs. Everyone always underestimated them, but they weren't someone to ignore. Susan, he found, was very sassy and had a backbone like no other. Her wit made him laugh on countless occasions, which was a lot more than usual. Hannah was also very bright and in Harry's opinion could have been a Ravenclaw because she was in the top five of Charms, Transfiguration, and Astronomy. Harry's opinion of Hufflepuff shifted rather quickly, and he found himself wondering if these two girls were what caused such a confidence change in Neville. The brown-haired Gryffindor sure was a lot more at ease around these girls than usual.

Harry felt a small hand slip into his own, and he smiled at his girlfriend. She returned it happily, and he pulled her in closer to his side.

Yes, life for Harry Potter was good right now. He should have known it wouldn't last long.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore, one of the greatest wizards of all times, was currently away from the great castle of Hogwarts. He was busy grinned maliciously at the prisoners at his feet. There were three of them, and they all looked much worn out. Years of being a prisoner did that to you, after all. Torture, starvation, and harsh accommodations were a fact of life for them.

The oldest was a woman. She had curly brown hair, and caramel eyes. She was too thin, and very dirty. Her clothes were ripped in many places, and her head was downcast. Yet, she still was determined to protect her children, and clutched the two kids closely to her.

The oldest child was a girl. Dumbledore guessed she would be a second year if she was at Hogwarts right now. She was also very malnourished, and worse for wear. Her black hair was wild and untamed, and her brown eyes flashed to him for a split second, full of fear.

The Headmaster turned his gaze to the youngest. The young boy was small, but Albus guessed he was nine or ten, despite being undersized. He looked much more defiant than his sister, and his emerald eyes met Dumbledore's gaze bravely. He pulled his arm out of his mother's clutch, and brought it to his wavy brown hair, tugging at it nervously. The Headmaster caught the movement for what it was, and smirked at the boy. While he was making an effort to appear courageous, the boy was clearly very much afraid.

"Mary Grindelwald," Albus murmured, causing the woman to flinch. He walked over to her, and regardless of the tight expression she was wearing, he kneeled next to the two children. "And Rebecca and Nathaniel," he added cheerfully, before dropping his kind exterior.

He grabbed the boy, ignoring the cries of the woman, and the flinch from the boy. He threw the child onto the ground, and pulled out his wand.

"Where is your husband?" he growled at Mary Grindelwald.

She cast a terrified look at her son, before turning her desperate eyes to the Headmaster. "I don't know," she said frantically. "You know that! Please, don't hurt him!"

Albus frowned, before smirking once again. "How about your other son, Evander," he murmured. "Do you know that he is back at Hogwarts?"

Mary froze, her expression turning to horror.

"Yes," Albus Dumbledore continued in a deadly whisper. "Now do you know why that would be?"

She shook her head, and Albus smiled sadistically. "I think you do," he hissed. "After all you still have one more child alive." Albus paused, taking in her features. "Or maybe he doesn't know? After all, he did abandon you all those years ago, just like your husband."

"My husband didn't abandon me," she said firmly, but her eyes were downcast.

"I knew Gellert," Albus said coldly. "He would easily give you up for his own life. And Evander has more in common with his father than just his looks."

"You don't know Gellert Grindelwald," Mary hissed, anger on her features for a brief second before it fell and she lost her determined manner.

"Ahh, but you are not so sure about your eldest son, are you?" Dumbledore smirked. "After all, he never made any attempt to find _you_. After becoming my apprentice it didn't take long for him to come to his senses."

At her sharp intake of breath, it made him grin in triumph. He had apparently hit a sore subject.

"Soon, your son and I will find your coward of a husband," Dumbledore continued coldly. He cast a gaze at the two small children, who were both watching with fearful eyes, and twirled his wand in his hand. "And we _will_ kill him."

Mary Grindelwald looked away, but he managed to see a single tear fall down her sunken cheeks. Dumbledore stared at her for a minute before turning back to the boy and smiling darkly. The Dark Lord knew this was going to be fun.

"_Crucio_," he muttered, with his eyes completely focused on the boy.

As the boy began to whiter in pain and scream, Albus Dumbledore began to plan. The mother and girl began to plead for him to stop, but he ignored them. Their ignorance was certainly entertaining, yet it was also quite bothersome. To think that they actually thought Evander Grindelwald was on his side…. They truly were suffering some major brain damage from the extensive torture. But he knew he had to do something about the Grindelwalds, including Evander.

"Gellert Grindelwald," Albus growled. "Where are you?"

* * *

Harry left the Room of Requirements in a hurry, checking his watch. He had about twenty minutes until potions class, but he was all sweaty from his dueling with Tom and his Dad. Harry rushed to the Gryffindor Common Room and took a quick shower and threw on his clothes. He glanced at the watch again and saw he had about five minutes. Snatching up his bag, he left for the dungeons quickly. To Harry's relief, he managed to get to the classroom with a minute to spare, and he collapsed next to Draco. Ignoring the blonde's curious looks, he turned his attention to Professor Malfoy, who was glaring at him in a very Snape-like manner for nearly being late.

How he hadn't realized he was Snape before, he didn't know.

"Today, class," the disguised professor said, "we will be working on the Advancing Burn Healing Potion. You will find all the instructions in your books. You may begin."

"Okay, Potter," Draco said, trying his very best to sound conceited. "Go get the supplies, if you can manage that much without messing it up."

The Boy-Who-Lived mock-glared at him, but did as Draco had ordered. He brought back the supplies and they got to work silently, besides the few insults flashed at each other for good measure. They worked the potion into perfection, and quickly put the blue potion in a vial and turned it in. With nothing else to do, the two of them surveyed the other pairs.

What really caught Harry's attention was not the smoking cauldron of Goyle's and Dean's. Nor was it Crabbe who was staring at an empty cauldron with his partner, Lavender, as far away as possible, playing with her hair. Not even Weasley's brown potion that was causing Zabini to spit insults at him really made him shocked. It was the fact that Neville Longbottom had not exploded his cauldron, and he and Daphne Greengrass were working together quite capably. Even more surprising, was that Nott and Hermione were also done with their potion and were talking quietly about Ancient Runes. Harry nudged Draco subtly, but the blonde had already noticed as well.

"Harry," Draco whispered, "what has the world come to?"

Harry just shook his head, his eyes wide, and he stayed in that position for a good minute, despite the ringing bell that dismissed the class.

"Harry, are you coming?"

Harry looked up to meet Hermione's confused eyes, and managed a half-nod.

"Yes," he murmured. "I'm coming."

* * *

Theodore Nott lounged back into the black couch, glancing at Pansy beside him. Daphne and Blaise were across from them, both reading quietly. The Slytherin Common Room was empty, with most still in classes while they enjoyed their free period.

Pansy played with her hair, eyeing Theodore slyly. "So, Theo," she started casually, causing him to flash her a wary look.

"Yes?" he questioned quietly.

"I saw you talking to Granger," she said, watching him with a carefully blank expression. "What's with that new development?"

Theodore glared at her, looking disgusted. "Like I would ever want anything to do with that _mudblood_-"

"Oh stop," Daphne said sharply, closing her book with a snap. She rolled her eyes at him. "We all know that none of us agree with that pureblood crap completely. Honestly, bowing down to a crazy psychopath and being tortured isn't my idea of a great way to have fun."

Theodore flashed a nervous look around the common room, before quickly waving his wand. "Silentium voxes," he murmured, casting the silencing spell for insurance that no one would overhear them.

"Suspicious much?" Daphne suggested.

Theodore glared at her. "Honestly, Daphne, you have no self-preservation. What if someone overheard us?" he hissed.

"You're one to talk," she retorted, her eyes narrowed. "I wasn't the one getting all buddy-buddy with Granger today in public."

"You were also being civil to Longbottom, Daphne," Pansy mentioned, looking up from her nail inspection for a second. "So you really have no room to talk."

Daphne turned to her in an instant, angry. "I was at least only working with him, not socializing! Seriously, I have to pass potions somehow, and letting Longbottom do whatever will surely just end up with me in the hospital wing!"

"Well you actually didn't seem to mind working with him," Pansy countered, and Theodore nodded in agreement.

Daphne shrugged. "He's a pureblood at least, so it's not that big of a deal. It's not like he's _Granger_."

Theodore glared at her again, and she met it with an equally harsh stare.

"If you children are finally done," Blaise said, his eyes still on the large textbook in his hands, "we can talk about our Draco and Potter problem."

Three sets of eyes flashed to him, all thoughts on the previous argument gone.

"You saw how they acted in Potions," Blaise continued, glancing up from the book. "They were obviously faking."

"But the question is why," Daphne murmured thoughtfully, biting her lip.

"And what are we going to do about it?" Pansy added, looking around to her fellow Slytherins for suggestions.

"I think," Blaise started slowly. "We just need to confront them."

"Like Gryffindors?" Theodore scoffed, her dark eyes bearing into the Italian boy mockingly. "Please, Blaise, you're intelligence levels are plummeting."

"Says the guy conversing with the insufferable bookworm," Daphne muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes.

Blaise ignored the insult and smirked. "It won't be all without a plan, of course. I _am_ a Slytherin after all."

"Now I'm intrigued," Daphne said, leaning in. "What exactly do you have in mind?"

Blaise smirked even more, and leaning in, he began to explain.

* * *

_The flames danced before his eyes, and he stared in shock. Falling into a sprint, he ran towards the house. His breath came out in gasps as he neared the house of flames, looking desperately for his family._

"_Mum! Dad! Emma! Becca!" His screams were met by silence and he felt a rising panic within him._

_He pulled out his wand, trying desperately to remember a water charm of some sort. He thought he had read one before, but in the midst of his fear and extreme terror, he couldn't recall anything. He fought tears as he scanned the property and ran to the other side of the house, hoping to see his family. He jerked when he saw a movement at the side, and his father's figure emerged._

"_Evan!" his father yelled, coming to him. He looked very fearful, and sweat was sliding down his face. His dark eyes were scanning all around them, with his eyes darting around as if searching for something. He turned back to his son, and thrust a ring into his hand._

_He stared at the ring in his hand in confusion, before turning back to the fire. "Dad, the fire-"_

"_It's a portkey," his father said quickly, his eyes piercing as he motioned to the ring. "Activate it by saying 'Safe House'."_

_He looked at his father, shock numbing his senses. "What about you and Mum and Emma-"_

"_Do as I say," his father said angrily, his face hard as he stared at his heir. "Do it now Evander."_

"_Father?" He whispered his eyes wide. His father rarely spoke to him like this. "But the fire-"_

"_I have to go find your Mum and sisters," his father interrupted. "I have to make sure they made it out. Now GO, we will be there shortly!"_

_Nodding shakily at his urgent words, he whispered the words to send him away from his burning home. With a pulling force, he vanished from the property and fell onto a hard wood floor. Looking around, he noticed he was in a cottage. Too worried to take focus on his surroundings, he curled up into a ball on the dark ground. With the image of the fire still in his mind, he dissolved into tears. Minutes passed, until he stirred, and got to his feet with a new determination._

_He had to find them! He just had to. They must have just gotten lost or something. They weren't gone, they wouldn't leave him._

_He ran out of the cottage, and looked around desperately. All he saw was a bunch of trees, but then he noticed a few building in a far-off direction. He quickly made his way over there, and found himself in a small town. A few people were out walking around and shopping, and gave him curious looks as he ran passed them. He looked around for a sign to tell him where he was, when he came across a newspaper station. Surely one of the people could tell him what to do. He bolted towards the newspaper place, but stopped as he saw the newspaper being displayed above it._

_In big black letters, it said: GRINDELWALD DEFEATED BY ALBUS DUMBLEDORE, THE TERROR ENDS._

Evander Grindelwald bolted away, shaking and covered in sweat as he exited his nightmare. Gasping, he came back into reality, and took deep breaths to calm himself. That was the third night in a row he had that memory come to life in his sleep, and it terrified him. That was the worst moment of his life. He had lost his family in the fire, and Albus Dumbledore had killed his father.

Evander buried his head into his hands, trying to hold himself together. Despite his efforts, tears fell from his eyes. Brushing them away impatiently, he cursed softly.

He was going to make Albus Dumbledore pay for destroying his life. Even if he died trying, he was going to kill the man who murdered his father.

**So I hoped that cleared a few things up. I know that the timeline is a little off…. It is an AU so I had Grindelwald be defeated many years after than he actually was in the actual book. This is the only way my plot would work out right. I will explain more details in later chapters….. Also, I hope you liked my different perspectives from other characters. I know there wasn't much Harry, but there's plenty more to come! Hope you liked it, please review:)**


	16. IMPORTANT AN!

Dear faithful readers,

I know this will make you either upset, annoyed, or angry, but it must be done. **I am going to revise this story.** I know, I know! But a few of you have pointed out how completely crazy the situation is, and looking back to my first chapters, I also noticed my many loop holes and mistakes. While many people have notified me in less than conventional ways, I agree with the reviews. While yes, the flamers annoy me, I'm just particularly astounded that if they hated my story so much that they would take the time to insult me. There are many worse and better stories out there, and although I realize that my writing was imperfect (especially in the beginning stages of this story), I do not believe that my story is complete trash like a few reviewers have. I ask that if any of you do not support my writing, that you would either tell me more politely in the future or just shut up and spend your energy on something more productive than insulting me.

ANYWAYS, now that I've gotten that off my chest, I thank each of you that have supported my story and encouraged me. I think the updates will be fast, I just need to alter a few things here and there, so don't worry. The first few chapters will be completely different, but most of the later chapters will be much of the same. I will most likely put the story under a different name, so I would suggest you add me to your author's alert if you care to follow my revision of the story. I will also notify you when the first chapter is up with another author's note.

I hope that the revision of Destiny's Light will be to your satisfaction. I realize this great and giant plot I've created is very hard to perfect, and is extremely AU, so I am hoping to be able to recreate it in a way it would be plausible. If not, I may be forced to abandon the story, but at this point I still believe it has potential.

Again, I thank all of you wonderful readers and reviewers! Despite the few exceptions, you have all been incredible and uplifting… I should have the first chapter up in a few days! Happy reading:)

-HopeHealer


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